Mirror asymmetry in Gamow-Teller transitions of large ft value

Abstract

Abstract The several single-nucleon wave functions appropriate to the several parent states of a β-decaying nucleus are different in that they must reflect the several separation energies. These differences engender differences between the overlap integrals that enter into the β-transition amplitudes which will therefore themselves differ as between the negaton- and positon-emitting members of an isobaric mirror since the separation energies differ on the two sides of the mirror. The question is asked as to how large this effect may be in cases where, because of strong cancellation between parents, the ft value is large and so where this asymmetry due to binding energy differences will be largest. The question is answered via a Monte Carlo approach: it is shown that large log ft value differences may indeed be expected but that the effect is not large enough to account for the differences found in the A = 14 and 32 systems. This conclusion agrees with that made earlier in relation to the small ft value differences found between mirror transitions of normal ft value.