Systematical Analysis of Alpha-active Nuclides

Abstract

The systematical analysis of alpha-active nuclides is useful for both the nuclear technology applications and understanding of nuclear structure study. Geiger-Nuttall law, which describes a dependence of the disintegration constant on the range of α-particles, was deduced from the Gamow theory explaining the passage of the α-particles through the Coulomb barrier by the quantum mechanical tunneling effect. Ground-to-ground state α-transitions for natural and artificial α-active nuclides were analyzed utilizing the Geiger-Nuttall rule. From rough analysis five group-like branches on the dependence of α-decay half- lives on α-particle energy were observed. Detailed analysis shows that precise linear dependences of the logarithm of α-decay half-lives on the reciprocal of square root of the α- particle energy for even-even isotopes of the U, Pu and Cm there are. However, for some even-even isotopes of the Po, Ra and Th regular behaviour of mass numbers was broken. This non-regularity of the mass numbers on the Geiger-Nuttall line is explained by the nuclear shell model.