Systematic Study on Alpha Decay Half-Lives of Superheavy Nuclei

The α-decay half-lives of a set of superheavy nuclear isotope chain from Z = 105 to 120 have been analyzed systematically within the WKB method, and some nuclear structure features are found. The decay barriers have been determined in the quasi-molecular shape path within the Generalized Liquid Drop Model （GLDM） including the proximity effects between nucleons in a neck and the mass and charge asymmetry. The results are in reasonable agreement with the published experimental data for the alpha decay half-llves of isotopes of charge 112, 114, and 116, of the element 294118 and of some decay products. A comparison of present calculations with the results by the DDM3Y effective interaction and by the Viola-Seaborg-Sobiczewski （VSS） formulae is also made. The experimental a decay half lives all stand in between the GLDM calculations and VSS formula results. This demonstrates the possibility of these models to provide reasonable estimates for the half-lives of nuclear decays by a emissions for the domain of SHN. The half-lives of these new nuclei are thus well tested from the reasonable consistence of the macroscopic, the microscopic, the empirical formulae and the experimental data. This also shows that the present data of SHN themselves are consistent. It could suggest that the present experimental claims on the existence of new elements Z =110 - 118 are reliable. It is expected that greater deviations of a few SHN between the data and the model may be eliminated by further improvements on the precision of the measurements.     

α-decay half-lives of superheavy nuclei and general predictions

The generalized liquid drop model (GLDM) and the cluster model have been employed to calculate the α-decay half-lives of superheavy nuclei (SHN) using the experimental α-decay Q values. The results of the cluster model are slightly poorer than those from the GLDM if experimental Q values are used. The prediction powers of these two models with theoretical Q values from Audi et al. (Qaudi) and Muntian et al. (QM) have been tested to find that the cluster model with Qaudi and QM could provide reliable results for Z>112 but the GLDM with Qaudi for Z≤112. The half-lives of some still unknown nuclei are predicted by these two models and these results may be useful for future experimental assignment and identification.     

锕系原子核自发裂变性质的理论研究

运用推广的液滴模型（GLDM）来确定锕系原子核的自发裂变势垒, 采用量子力学中的WKB近似方法对相应自发裂变的半衰期进行了研究。 在GLDM中, 首次考虑了微观Strutinsky壳修正对裂变势垒的影响。 理论计算的锕系区重核自发裂变半衰期与实验值符合得很好, 表明包括微观壳修正的GLDM可以成功研究重核的自发裂变性质。 The spontaneous fission half lives of the actinides are calculated by the WKB approximation and the potential barriers are constructed by a General Liquid Drop Model (GLDM) including the proximity energy, the mass and charge asymmetry, and an accurate nucleus radius. The microscopic shell correction which plays a key role for the spontaneous fission barrier is considered for the first time. The two parameter quasi molecular shape and the proximity are described in details within the GLDM. The effects of the microscopic shell correction and proximity energy for fission barrier are discussed separately. The calcula ted spontaneous fission half lives for the actinides reasonably accord with the experimental data, implying the present GLDM combined with the microscopic shell correction can be used to study the spontaneous fission properties of heavy nuclei successfully.     

Proton radioactivity within the generalized liquid drop model with various versions of proximity potentials

In the present work, we systematically investigate the proton radioactivity half-lives of spherical proton emitters adopting a generalized liquid drop model(GLDM) with 16 different proximity potentials, of which the proximity potential Prox.77-13 gives the closest results to the experimental data. Combined with the previous conclusion that the GLDM with proximity potential Prox.77-13 can also best describe α decay half-lives, which makes the model more uniform and consistent.Further, we use the proximity potential Prox.77-13 in GLDM to predict the proton radioactivity half-lives of 14 spherical proton emitters that are allowed energetically but not yet observed experimentally or specifically quantified. Finally, we research the Geiger-Nuttall law for proton radioactivity. The results reveal that the Geiger-Nuttall law can also be well used to study the proton radioactivity half-lives of isotopes with the same orbital angular momentum l.     

Proton Radioactivity Within a Hybrid Method

The proton radioactivity half-lives are investigated theoretically within a hybrid method.The potential barriers preventing the emission of protons are determined in the quasimolecular shape path within a generalized liquid drop model (GLDM). The penetrability is calculated with the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) approximation. The spectroscopic factor has been taken into account in halflife calculation, which is obtained by employing the relativistic mean field (RMF) theory combined with the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) method. The half-lives within the present hybrid method reproduced the experimental data very well. Some predictions for proton radioactivity are made for future experiments.     

超重核292-310122同位素链的α衰变和自发裂变的竞争

基于推广的液滴模型(GLDM) 理论框架,计算了292-310122 同位素链的 衰变和自发裂变的半衰期。计算时的基本输入量为两子核的质量数和电荷数以及反应Q 值。GLDM能很好地描述重核和超重核的 衰变和自发裂变过程。计算结果表明,A < 308 时在同位素链上N = 176~184 的区域α衰变为主要衰变模式。A > 308 时在同位素链上自发裂变为主要衰变模式。308122 是α衰变和自发裂变的分界点,暗示着N = 184 为中子幻数。Based on the framework of the Generalized Liquid Droplet Model (GLDM), alpha decay and spontaneous fission half-lives for 292-310122 isotopes are studied. The calculation of the basic inputs which only need the two fragmentmass numbers, charge numbers and the Q value. GLDM can describe alpha decay and spontaneous fission the nuclei. It is found that the alpha decay is the dominant mode of decay for isotopes with mass number A < 308, and for those with A > 308 spontaneous fission is dominant. The demarcation between alpha decay and spontaneous fission is at 308122, which shows the presence of a spherical neutron shell closure at N = 184.     

理论预测超重核274-291Cn和266-287Ds的衰变模式

自发裂变和α衰变是影响超重核稳定性的两个主要因素。为了探索270Ds附近的长寿命的超重核,系统地计算了电荷数在104 ≤ Z ≤ 112范围内的α衰变与自发裂变之间的竞争。采用推广的液滴模型和唯象的解析公式计算了α衰变半衰期。基于包括壳效应和同位旋效应的WKB近似方法估算了相同超重核的自发裂变半衰期,进而预测了未知超重核274-276,279Cn与267-269Ds的衰变模式。The stability of superheavy nuclei (SHN) is controlled mainly by spontaneous fission and α decay processes. To investigate whether long lived SHN could really exist around 270Ds, the competition between α decay and spontaneous fission in the region 104 ≤ Z ≤ 112 are studied systematically. The α decay half-lives are investigated by employing a generalized liquid drop model (GLDM) and phenomenological analytical formula. Calculations of spontaneous fission half-lives for the same SHN are carried out based on the Wenzel-Kramers-Brillouin(WKB) approximation with both the shell effect and the isospin effect included. Decay modes are predicted for the unknown nuclei 274-276,279Cn and 267-269Ds.     

Properties of $ \alpha$ -decay to ground and excited states of heavy nuclei

Branching ratios and half-lives of a \alpha -decay to the ground-state rotational bands as well as the high-lying excited states of even-even nuclei have been calculated in the framework of the generalized liquid drop model (GLDM) and Royer’s formula that we improved very recently. The calculation covers the isotopic chains from Ra to No in the mass regions 222 ￡ \leq A ￡ \leq 252 and 88 ￡ \leq Z ￡ \leq 102 . The agreement between the calculated results and the experimental data indicates the reliability of investigating the properties of the unfavored a \alpha -decay with our method, especially the improved Royer’s formula, which is very valuable for the analysis of experimental data. In addition, the dependence of half-lives on excitation energies of daughter nuclei has been investigated. It is shown that the influence on half-lives becomes stronger and stronger with the increase of the excitation energies.     

质子放射性寿命的新规律

对球形核和变形核质子放射性的半衰期进行了系统的分析和研究,提出了新的计算质子放射性寿命的解析公式。 通过对公式计算寿命和实验测量值的系统比较,发现两者之间符合得非常好,说明新公式十分准确并具有良好的预言能力。 Systematic calculations on proton radioactivity half lives of both spherical and deformed nuclei are carried out. A new formula with only four parameters is proposed for proton radioactivity half lives. The half lives calculated by using the new formula are in good agreement with the experimental ones. The new formula is simple but accurate, which is very useful for further experiments.     

Effects of shell correction on α decay properties

The shell correction effects on the α decay properties of heavy and superheavy nuclei have been studied in a macroscopic-microscopic manner. The macroscopic part is constructed from the generalized liquid drop model(GLDM), whereas the microscopic part, namely, the shell correction energy, brings about certain effects on the potential barriers and half-lives under a WKB approximation, which is emphasized in this work. The results show that the shell effects play a significant role in the estimation of the α decay half-lives within the actinide region.Predictions of the α decay half-lives are then generated for superheavy nuclei, which will provide useful information for future experiments.     

Theoretical study on spherical proton emission

The proton radioactivity half-lives of spherical proton emitters are investigated within a generalized liquid drop model(GLDM),including the proximity effects between nuclei in a neck and the mass and charge asymmetry.The penetrability is calculated in the WKB approximation and the assault frequency is estimated by the quantum mechanism method considering the structure of the parent nucleus.The spectroscopic factor is taken into account in half-life calculation,which is obtained by employing the relativisti...     

Two-proton radioactivity within Coulomb and proximity potential model

Considering the preformation probability of the two emitted protons in the parent nucleus, we extend the Coulomb and proximity potential model (CPPM) to systematically study two-proton (2p) radioactivity half-lives of the nuclei close to proton drip line. The proximity potential chosen is Prox. 81 proposed by Blocki et al. in 1981. Furthermore, we apply this model to predict the half-lives of possible 2p radioactive candidates whose 2p radioactivity is energetically allowed or observed but not yet quantified in the evaluated nuclear properties table NUBASE2016. The predicted results are in good agreement with those from other theoretical models and empirical formulas, namely the effective liquid drop model (ELDM), generalized liquid drop model (GLDM), Gamow-like model, Sreeja formula and Liu formula.     

Partial α-decay half-lives of ground to ground and ground to excited states of Thorium family

Partial half-lives and Q-values of allowed α-decay for Thorium family are evaluated by using the WKB approximation. In order to calculate the partial half-lives, transition probabilities from ground to ground and ground to excited states of daughter nuclei are obtained. The α-decay potential barrier includes deformed volume, surface, and Coulomb parts in the deformed liquid drop model (DLDM), deformed Woods-Saxon nuclear potential and centrifugal term. The quadrupole and the hexadecapole deformations are considered in the calculations. Calculated half-lives are compared to the results of other theoretical models as well as experimental data. Comparison of the present study and other theoretical methods with experimental data indicated that the predicted half-lives using current approach are well agreed with the experimental data than results of UMADAC and CPPMDN theoretical models. Moreover, the evaluated half-lives correspond well with the Geiger-Nuttall empirical formula.     

The analysis of predictability of \alpha -decay half-life formulae and the \alpha partial half-lives of some exotic nuclei

The predictabilities of the three $ \alpha$ -decay half-life formulae, the Royer GLDM, the Viola-Seaborg and the Sobiczewski-Parkhomenko formulae, have been evaluated by developing a method based on the ansatz of standard experimental benchmarking. The coefficients of each formula were re-derived using the reliable data of the $ \alpha$ -standards nuclei. The modified formulae that resulted were used to evaluate the accuracies of the formulae towards the prediction of half-lives of a set of nuclides with well-studied $ \alpha$ spectroscopic data as well as a set of exotic $ \alpha$ emitters. Further, a simple linear optimisation of the modified formulae allowed adjustments for the insufficient statistics of the primary data set without changing the modified formulae. While the three modified formulae showed equivalent results for all the medium heavy nuclei except the odd-odd, the modified GLDM showed relatively the best figures of merit for the odd-odd and superheavy nuclides.     

Systematic studies on α-decay half-lives for super heavy nuclei

Radioactive decay of super heavy nuclei via the emission of α-particles has been studied theoretically in the preformed cluster model (PCM). The nucleus-nucleus (NN) potential is obtained by double folding the density distributions of the α-particle and the daughter nucleus with a realistic effective interaction. The M3Y effective interaction, supplemented by a zero-range pseudo-potential for exchange term, is used to calculate the NN potential. The α decay half-lives for 317 nuclei at Z=102–120 are performed in the PCM framework with the theoretical Q values extracted from the Mller-Nix-Kratz and Liran-Marinov-Zeldes mass tables and are compared with the experimental data. The calculated results are also compared with those obtained by using Q values from the Muntian-Hofmann-Patyk-Sobiczewski and Myers-Swiatecki mass estimates.     

r-过程路径核β——衰变半衰期的估算

分析了20 < A < 190范围内丰中子核β衰变的实验数据,根据半衰期随质子数、中子数以及衰变能变化所呈现的壳效应和对效应等特点,提出了一种有效估算丰中子核β衰变寿命的公式。新的计算公式形式简单包含了较少的参数、计算量小。用该公式能较为准确地再现丰中子核的β衰变半衰期。用RIKEN最新测量丰中子核半衰期检验了该公式的外推能力,本工作可以为r-过程研究提供可靠的输入数据。Experimental data of the β--decay half-lives for the nuclei with atomic number between 20 and 190 are investigated. We have systematically studied the shell effects and pairing effects on β--decay half-lives versus the decay energy Q and nucleon numbers (Z, N). An empirical formula has been proposed to calculate the β--decay half-lives of neutron-rich nuclei. The empirical formula is simple and has relatively few parameters. Experimental β--decay half-lives of the neutron-rich nuclei are well reproduced by the new formula. In addition, the extrapolating capacity of this formula has been checked with the very recent experimental data from RIKEN. The predicted half-lives for r-process relevant nuclei with the current formula can be served as the reliable input of r-process model calculations.     

超重核294118和291116及其α衰变链上各核素半衰期的研究

运用推广的液滴模型（GLDM）确定了超重核294118和291116及其α衰变链上各核素的衰变势垒, 采用量子力学中的WKB方法计算α衰变中的势垒穿透几率, 对该链上各原子核的α衰变半衰期进行了研究。 此外, 还利用Royer公式对该链上各原子核的α衰变半衰期进行了计算。 结果表明, GLDM 考虑亲和能与Royer公式给出的α衰变半衰期与超重核区的实验值符合很好, 验证了GLDM和Royer公式在超重核区的适用性,可以用来预测超重核的半衰期。 最后, 预言了Z=118 和116 同位素链上各核素的半衰期, 结果表明, 在Z=118和116中存在α衰变长寿命同位素, 这需要实验上的检验。The α decay potential barrier of the newly synthesized superheavy nuclei starting from 294118 and 291116 have been determined and their half lives have been studied with the Generalized Liquid Drop Model(GLDM) connected with WKB approximation and Royer’s formulae．The α decay half lives of the nuclei belonging to the superheavy nuclei starting from 294118 and 291116 have been calculated．The calculated results are in agreement with the experimental data, which show that the α decay half lives of superheavy nuclei with the GLDM and Royer’s formulae can be applied in the studying on superheavy nuclei successfully．Finally, the half lives of Z=118 and 116 isotopes have been predicted, and the results suggest there may be some long lived superheavy nuclei for α decay in those isotopes.     

Microscopic description of superheavy nuclei

The results of extensive microscopic relativistic mean field (RMF) calculations for the nuclei appearing in the α-decay chains of recently discovered superheavy elements with 109  Z  118 are presented and discussed. The calculated ground-state properties like total binding energies, Q-values, deformations, radii, and densities closely agree with the corresponding experimental data, where available. The root mean square radii closely follow A^1/3 law (A being the mass number) with the constant r_o = 0.9639 ± 0.0005 fm. The double folding (tρρ) approximation is used to calculate the interaction potential between the daughter and the α, using RMF densities along with the density-dependent nucleon–nucleon interaction (M3Y). This in turn is employed within the WKB approximation to estimate the half-lives without any additional parameter for α-decay. The half-lives are highly sensitive to the Q-values used and qualitatively agree with the corresponding experimental values. The use of experimental Q-values in the WKB approximation improves the agreement with the experiment, indicating that the resulting interaction potential is reliable and can be used with confidence as the real part of the optical potential in other scattering and reaction processes.     

Half-Lives for Alpha Radioactivity of Elements with 104 ≤ Z ≤ 120 within Unified Fission Model

α decay half-lives are calculated using the Qα values obtained by Semi-empirical Shell Model in the framework of the Unified Fission Model (UFM) with the Coulomb repulsion, nuclear attraction due to proximity potential, and rotational energy due to angular momentum transfer of α particle. In addition, the calculated and experimental half-lives of 425 nuclei are compared to check the validity of the model applied on α decay. The calculated half-lives of α decay are in good agreement with the experimental data. Finally, some usefulpredications on the α decay half-lives are provided for future experiments.     

Neutron and proton shell closure in the superheavy region via cluster radioactivity in <Superscript>280–314</Superscript>116 isotopes

Based on the concept of cold valley in fission and fusion, the radioactive decay of superheavy^280–314116 nuclei was studied taking Coulomb and proximity potentials as the interacting barrier. It is found that the inclusion of proximity potential does not change the position of minima but minima become deeper which agrees with the earlier findings of Gupta and co-workers. In addition to alpha particle minima, the other deepest minima occur for ⁸Be, ^12,14C clusters. In the fission region two deep regions are found each consisting of several comparable minima, the first region centred on ²⁰⁸Pb and the second is around ¹³²Sn. The cluster decay half-lives and other characteristics are computed for various clusters ranging from alpha particle to ⁷⁰Ni. The computed half-lives for alpha decay match with the experimental values and with the values calculated using Viola-Seaborg-Sobiczewski (VSS) systematic. The plots connecting computed Q values and half-lives against neutron number of daughter nuclei were studied for different clusters and it is found that the next neutron shell closures occur at N = 162, 172 and 184. Isotopic and isobaric mass parabolas are studied for various cluster emissions and minima of parabola indicate neutron shell closure at N = 162, 184 and proton shell closure at Z = 114. Our study shows that ₁₆₂²⁷⁶114 is the deformed doubly magic and ₁₈₄²⁹⁸114 is the spherical doubly magic nuclei.