New look at Geiger-Nuttall law and α clustering of heavy nuclei *

Abstract

Abstract The Geiger-Nuttall (GN) law of α decay is commonly explained in terms of the quantum tunneling phenomenon. In this study, we show that such an explanation is actually not enough regarding the α particle clustering. Such a conclusion is drawn after exploring the involved coefficients of the GN law based on the conventional description of α decay, namely the formation of an α cluster and its subsequent penetration. The specific roles of the two former processes, in the GN law, manifest themselves via the systematical analysis of the calculated and experimental α decay half-lives versus the decay energies across the and shell closures. The α-cluster preformation probability is then found to behave in a GN-like pattern. This previously ignored point is explicitly demonstrated as the product of an interplay between the mean-field and pairing effect, which in turn reveals the structural influence on the formation of the α cluster in a simple and clear manner. In addition to providing an effective method to evaluate the amount of surface α clustering in heavy nuclei, the present conjecture supports other theoretical treatments of the α preformation probability.