Predictability analysis of α decay formulae and the α partial half-lives of exotic nuclei

Laboratorio de Biofísicoquímica y Estudios de Radiación, Facultad de Ciencias Físico Matemáticas, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Cd. Universitaria, Morelia, Michoacán 58060, Mexico

^* Email: nita@ifm.umich.mx, nitaschubert@gmail.com

Published online: 3 August 2018

Abstract

We examine the ability of 3 phenomenological alpha decay formulae, the Generalised Liquid Drop Model, the Sobiczewski- Parkhomenko and the Viola-Seaborg-Sobiczewski formulae, to predict the α partial half-lives T_α of 100 exotic alpha radioactive nuclei by the statistical quantification of their accuracy and precision. These quantities were derived using a method based on standard experimental quality assurance wherein the alpha spectroscopic data of 313 well-established alpha decaying nuclei (calibration and test data sets) were used. Experimental masses as well as Finite Range Droplet Model masses were used to compute Q_α. Improved coefficients for the three formulae were derived resulting in modified formulae. A simple linear optimization allowed adjustment of the modified formulae for the insufficient statistics of the odd-even and odd-odd decays of the calibration data set, without changing the modified formulae. Relatively better figures of merit for the odd-odd and the SHE were obtained using the modified GLDM formula.