Heavy ions as probes of nuclei far from stability

Nuclei located far from stability provide us with an opportunity for studying nuclear matter existing under unusual conditions. In these regions of instability, radioactive decay becomes the predominant technique by which one can obtain structure information. We have been involved in the investigation of nuclear properties of nuclei close to the proton drip line. In our explorations we have utilized heavy-ion fusion, followed by particle evaporation, to produce the extremely neutron-deficient nuclei of interest. In our studies, single-particle states near the 82-neutron shell, populated in the β decay of short-lived nuclides, have been examined and their excitation energies determined. Numerous new isotopes, isomers, and β-delayed-proton and α-particle emitters have been discovered. This contribution will discuss our particle-decay investigations. These decay modes provide us with a convenient means of discovering new isotopes whose identification opens the way for further, more extensive explorations. Also, particle-decay energies in many instances can be used to determine mass differences between parent and daughter ground states. Such measurements are therefore used to test mass formulae and to obtain estimates of masses for proton rich nuclei. 19 refs., 13 figs