α-decay properties of superheavy nuclei with 117 ⩽ Z ⩽ 120 from systematics of decay chains and isotopic chains

Abstract

Abstract Recently, the synthesis of new elements above Z = 118 has been a hot topic in nuclear physics, whereas the α-decay chain is expected to be the unique tool to identify these heaviest nuclei. We have systematically calculated the α-decay energies and half-lives on the same footing for superheavy nuclei (SHN), within the cluster model plus a slightly modified Woods-Saxon (W.S.) potential as the nuclear potential. On the basis of the available experimental data, the key radius parameter (R) in the α-core potential is determined via the systematic trend from the α-decay chains and the isotopic chains. The α-decay energy (Qα) values and half-lives are then obtained simultaneously for those unknown SHN in the range of 117 ⩽ Z ⩽ 120, during which the decay width is obtained by a new treatment on the asymptotic behavior of the α-core wave function. It is found that the agreement between the theoretical values and experimental data is excellent for the nuclei 293,294117 and 294118 no matter which method is concerned for the determination of R parameter. The prediction on the α-decay chains for new elements Z = 119 and Z = 120 can be useful for the ongoing or forthcoming experiments.