Cluster-daughter overlap as a new probe of alpha-cluster formation in medium-mass and heavy even–even nuclei

Abstract

We study the possibility to use the cluster-daughter overlap as a new probe of alpha-cluster formation in medium-mass and heavy even–even nuclei. We introduce a dimensionless parameter O, which is the ratio between the root-mean-square (rms) intercluster separation and the sum of rms point radii of the daughter nucleus and the alpha particle, to measure the degree of the cluster-daughter overlap quantitatively. By using this parameter, a large (small) cluster-daughter overlap between the alpha cluster and daughter nucleus corresponds to a small (large) O value. The alpha-cluster formation is shown explicitly, in the framework of the quartetting wave function approach, to be suppressed when the O parameter is small, and be favored when the O parameter is large. We then use this O parameter to explore systematically the landscape of alpha-cluster formation probabilities in medium-mass and heavy even–even nuclei, with O being calculated from experimentally measured charge radii. The trends of alpha-cluster formation probabilities are found to be generally consistent with previous studies. The effects of various shell closures on the alpha-cluster formation are identified, along with some hints on a possible subshell structure at N=106 along the Hg and Pb isotopic chains. The study here could be a useful complement to the traditional route to probe alpha-cluster formation in medium-mass and heavy even–even nuclei using alpha-decay data. Especially, it would be helpful in the cases where the target nucleus is stable against alpha decay or alpha-decay data are currently not available.