Toward a comprehensive description of decay properties for uranium isotopes

Within the enhanced density dependent cluster model, with specific concern for density distributions in related nuclei, we investigate $\alpha$ decay and cluster radioactivity in uranium isotopes in the range $217\le A\le 243$. The available experimental data are found to be well reproduced, especially including the very recently measured values of new neutron-deficient isotopes. The half-lives of possible cluster emissions are consequently predicted as well, and will be somewhat valuable for future detection. Moreover, $\beta$ decay half-lives of these nuclei are also evaluated with respect to all kinds of $\beta$ processes, while their spontaneous fission lifetimes are provided via an effective relationship between the half-life and crucial quantities, namely the fissility parameter and fission barriers. In this sense, a full understanding of decay properties in uranium isotopes is expected to be achieved by combining their various radioactive features.

Figure 1

Variation of calculated half-lives in different decay modes with the mass number of the parent nucleus for ${}^{217–243}\mathrm{U}$. The black square denotes $\alpha$ decay, the red circle indicates heavier cluster emission, the green upward triangle means $\beta$ decay, and the blue downward triangle represents spontaneous fission.