The Expansion of the Periodic Table to Its Natural Limits

One hundred and fifty years after its conception the periodic table of the elements contains 118 members with the 7^th period being completely filled. This raises the question of what are the natural limits of the periodic table and whether yet undiscovered elements can be synthesized. Nowadays the alchemists' dream of producing new elements from already known ones has become reality. However, only single, short-lived atoms can be produced and investigated. The current article will give insights into the state of the art concerning the synthesis and chemical investigation of heavy and superheavy elements and discuss limits to the further expansion of the periodic table to even heavier elements in the 8^th period.