Self-consistent calculations of electron-capture decays in Z=118, 119, and 120 superheavy isotopes

Abstract

Weak decays in superheavy nuclei with proton numbers Z=118−120 and neutron numbers N=175−184 are studied within a microscopic formalism based on deformed self-consistent Skyrme Hartree-Fock mean-field calculations with pairing correlations. The half-lives of β+ decay and electron capture are compared with α-decay half-lives obtained from phenomenological formulas. The sensitivity of the half-lives to the unknown Q-energies is studied by comparing the results obtained from different approaches for the masses. It is shown that α-decay is always dominant in this mass region. The competition between α and β+/EC decay modes is studied in seven α-decay chains starting at different isotopes of Z=118, 119, and 120.

Keywords

• Weak-decay half-lives
• Superheavy nuclei
• Nuclear density-energy functional