Probing long-lived radioactive isotopes on the double-logarithmic Segrè chart

• Published in: Frontiers in chemistry Vol. 12; p. 1057928
• Main Author: Shang, Haitao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 12.02.2024
• Subjects: Chemistry; long-lived isotopes; non-radioactive elements; power laws; radioactive elements; stable isotopes; unknown isotopes; power laws; stable isotopes; non-radioactive elements; double-logarithmic scale; long-lived isotopes; radioactive elements; unknown isotopes; Segrè chart
• ISSN: 2296-2646; 2296-2646
• DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2024.1057928

Isotopes have been widely applied in a variety of scientific subjects; many aspects of isotopes, however, remain not well understood. In this study, I investigate the relation between the number of neutrons ( N ) and the number of protons ( Z ) in stable isotopes of non-radioactive elements and long-lived isotopes of radioactive elements at the double-linear scale (conventional Segrè chart) and the double-logarithmic scale. Statistical analyses show that N is a power-law function of Z for these isotopes: N = 0.73 × Z 1.16 . This power-law relation provides better predictions for the numbers of neutrons in stable isotopes of non-radioactive elements and long-lived isotopes of radioactive elements than the linear relation on the conventional Segrè chart. The power-law pattern reveled here offers empirical guidance for probing long-lived isotopes of unknown radioactive elements.