Superallowed α Decay to Doubly Magic ^{100}Sn

Area of Science:

• Nuclear Physics
• Radioactivity Studies

Background:

• Alpha decay is a fundamental radioactive process.
• Studying heavy, self-conjugate nuclei provides unique insights into nuclear structure.
• The decay of Polonium-212 into Lead-208 has been a benchmark for alpha decay studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report the first observation of an alpha-decay chain involving Xenon-108 and Tellurium-104.
• To investigate alpha radioactivity in heavy, self-conjugate nuclei.
• To compare alpha-decay properties with established benchmarks like Polonium-212.

Main Methods:

• Fusion-evaporation reaction: Iron-54 bombarded with Nickel-58.
• Production and identification of Xenon-108 and Tellurium-104.
• Utilized a recoil mass separator and implantation-decay correlation technique.

Main Results:

• Observed the ^{108}Xe→^{104}Te→^{100}Sn alpha-decay chain.
• Characterized alpha emitters Xenon-108 (Eα=4.4 MeV, T1/2=58 μs) and Tellurium-104 (Eα=4.9 MeV, T1/2<18 ns).
• Deduced an alpha-reduced width over 5 times larger than that for ^{212}Po.

Conclusions:

• This marks the first observation of alpha radioactivity to a heavy self-conjugate nucleus.
• Enhanced proton-neutron interactions in N=Z nuclei may lead to superallowed alpha decays.
• The observed decay widths suggest a significant enhancement compared to the ^{212}Po benchmark.