Abstract
Tin-100 is an ideal testing ground for certain types of nuclear shell structure. It has an equal number of neutrons and protons, which tends to exaggerate shell structure; and because the number (50 of each) is also a 'magic number', corresponding to a just-filled shell, tin-100 is much less unstable than other symmetrical nuclei of a similar size. Gamma-ray decays from neighbouring, related nuclei hint at a surprising asymmetry between the nuclear shell structure for neutrons and for protons.
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