3.

Scattering, Tunneling and Alpha Decay

3.1 Review: Energy eigenvalue problem
3.2 Unbound Problems in Quantum Mechanics
3.2.1 Innite barrier
3.2.2 Finite barrier
3.3 Alpha decay
3.3.1 Energetics
3.3.2 Quantum mechanics description of alpha decay
3.1 Review: Energy eigenvalue problem
Thetime-independentwavefunctionobeysthetime-independentSchrodingerequation:
H(xx) =E(xx)
whereEisidentiedastheenergyofthesystem.Ifthewavefunctionisgivenbyjustitstime-independentpart,
(xx,t) =(xx),thestateisstationary.Thus,thetime-independentSchrodingerequationallowsustondstationary
statesofthesystem,givenacertainHamiltonian.
Noticethatthetime-independentSchrodingerequationisnothingelsethantheeigenvalueequationfortheHamil-
tonianoperator.
Theenergyofaparticlehascontributionsfromthekineticenergyaswellasthepotentialenergy:
1
2 2 2
H= ( p p p x, z) + + ) +V( y,
x y z
2m
ormoreexplicitly:
1
2

H= + + +V(x,y,z)
2m x
2
y
2
z
2
whichcanbewritteninacompactformas
1
2

2
H= +V(x,y,z)
2m
(NoticethatV(x,y,z) isjustamultiplicativeoperator,inthesamewayasthepositionis).
In 1D,for a free particle there is no potentialenergy, butonly kineticenergy that wecanrewriteas:
1
2
1
2

2
H= p =
2m 2mx
2
TheeigenvalueproblemHw
n
(x) =E
n
w
n
(x) isthenthedierentialequation
2
1
2
w
n
(x)
Hw
n
(x) =E
n
w
n
(x) =E
n
w
n
(x)
2m x
2
Forafreeparticlethereisnorestrictiononthepossibleenergies,E
n
canbeanypositivenumber.Thesolutionto
theeigenvalueproblemisthentheeigenfunction:
iknx iknx
w
n
(x) =Asin(k
n
x) +Bcos(k
n
x) =A

e +B

e
whichrepresentstwowavestravelinginoppositedirections.
WeseethattherearetwoindependentfunctionsforeacheigenvalueE
n
.Alsotherearetwodistinctmomentum
eigenvaluesk
n
foreachenergyeigenvalue,whichcorrespondtotwodierentdirectionsofpropagationofthewave
iknx
functione .
35
3.2 Unbound Problems in Quantum Mechanics
Wewillthensolvethetime-independentSchrodingerequationinsomeinteresting1Dcasesthatrelatetoscattering
problems.
3.2.1 Innite barrier
We rstconsider a potentialas in Fig.14. Weconsider twocases:
CaseA.Thesystem(aparticle)hasatotalenergylargerthanthepotentialbarrierE > V
H
.
CaseB.Theenergyissmallerthanthepotentialbarrier,E < V
H
.
V
H
Region I Region II
x
E
2
E
1
V(x)
Fig. 14: Potential function and total energy of the particle
Letsrstconsidertheclassicalproblem.ThesystemisarigidballwithtotalenergyE givenbythesumofthe
kineticand potentialenergy. If we keep thetotalenergy xed, the kineticenergiesare dierent in the two regions:
T
I
=E T
II
=EV
H
2
p
IfE > V
H
, the kineticenergy in region two isT
II
= =EV
H
, yielding simply a reduced velocityfor the particle.
2m
IfE < V
H
instead,wewouldobtainanegativeT
II
kineticenergy.Thisisnotanallowedsolution,butitmeansthat
the particlecannottravelintoRegion IIanditsinsteadconnedinRegionI:The particle bouncesothe potential
barrier.
InquantummechanicsweneedtosolvetheSchrodingerequationinordertondthewavefunctiondescribingthe
particleatanyposition.Thetime-independentSchrodingerequationis

n
2
d
2
(x)
1
2
d
2
=E (x) inRegionI
2m dx
2
H(x) = (x) +V(x)(x) =E(x)

n
2
(x)
2mdx
2 d
2
= (EV
H
)(x) inRegionII
2m dx
2
The twocases dier becauseinRegion IItheenergy dierenceE =EV
H
iseitherpositiveornegative.
A. Positive energy
LetsrstconsiderthecaseinwhichE =EV
H
>0.Inbothregionstheparticlebehavesasafreeparticlewith
energyE
I
=E andE
II
=EV
H
.Wehavealreadyseenthesolutionstosuchdierentialequation.Theseare:
Ae
ikx
+Be
ikx

I
(x) =
x x
Ce
ik

+De
ik

II
(x) =
k
2
n
2

2
k
where
n
2
=E and =EV
H
.
2m 2m
ikx ikx
Wealreadyinterpretedthefunctione asawavetravelingfromlefttorightande asawavetravelingfrom
righttoleft.Wethenconsideracasesimilartotheclassicalcase,inwhichaballwassenttowardabarrier.Thenthe
particleisinitiallydescribedasawavetravelingfromlefttorightinRegionI.Atthepotentialbarriertheparticle
caneitherbereected,givingrisetoawavetravelingfromrighttoleftinRegionI,orbetransmitted,yieldinga
36

wavetravelingfromlefttorightinRegionII.ThissolutionisdescribedbytheequationsaboveifwesetD =0,
implyingthatthereisnowaveoriginatingfromthefarright.
Sincethewavefunctionshoulddescribeaphysicalsituation,wewantittobeacontinuousfunctionandwithcon-
tinuousderivative.Thuswehavetomatchthesolutionvaluesandtheirderivativesattheboundaryx =0.This
willgiveequationsforthecoecients,allowingustondtheexactsolutionoftheSchrodingerequation.Thisisa
boundary conditions problem.
From

I
(0)=
II
(0) and

II
(0)
I
(0)=

andD= 0weobtaintheconditions:
A+B =C, ik(AB) =ik

C
withsolutions
kk

2k
B = A, C = A
k+k

k+k

WecanfurtherndAbyinterpreting the wavefunction interms of a ux of particles. We thus x the incomingwave
V
m
uxtobe whichsets|A|= (wecanconsiderA tobeareal,positivenumberforsimplicity).Thenwehave:
nk
J J
kk

m 2k m
B = , C =
k+k

1k k+k

1k
Wecanalsoverifythefollowingidentity
k|A|
2
=k|B|
2
+k

|C|
2
whichfollowsfrom:
|A|
2
(kk

)
2
+4k

k
k|B|
2
+k

|C|
2
= [k(kk

)
2
+k

(2k)
2
] =k|A|
2
(k+k

)
2
(k+k

)
2
Letusmultiplyitby1/m:
1k 1k 1k

|C|
2
|A|
2
= |B|
2
+
m m m
Ae
ikx nk
Recall(page26)theinterpretationof(x)= asawavegivingauxofparticles|(x)|
2
v =|A|
2
.This
m
relationshipsimilarlyholdsfortheuxinregionIIaswellasforthereectedux.Thenwecaninterpretthe
equalityaboveasanequalityofparticleux:
nk nk nk
Theincomingux = |A|
2
isequaltothesumofthereected
R
= |B|
2
andtransmitted
T
= |C|
2
uxes.
m m m
The particle ux isconserved. Wecan then dene the reectionand transmission coecients as:
=
R
+
T
=R +T
where
2 2
k|B|
2
kk

k

|C|
2
2k k

R= = , T = =
k|A|
2
k+k

k|A|
2
k+k

k
ItstheneasytoseethatT+R= 1andwecaninterpretthereectionandtransmissioncoecientsasthereection
andtransmissionprobability,respectively.
Inlinewiththeprobabilisticnatureofquantummechanics,weseethatthesolutionoftheSchrodingerequation
does not give us a precise locationfor the particle. Instead it describes the probabilityof ndingthe particle at any
pointinspace.Giventhewavefunctionfoundabovewecanthencalculatevariousquantityofinterest,suchasthe
probabilityoftheparticlehavingagivenmomentum,positionandenergy.
B. Negative energy
NowweturntothecasewhereE < V
H
,sothatE < 0.Intheclassicalcasewesawthatthisimpliedthe
impossibilityfortheballtobeinregionII.Inquantummechanicswecannotsimplyguessasolutionbasedonour
intuition,butweneedagaintosolvetheSchrodingerequation.TheonlydierenceisthatnowinregionIIwehave

2
n
2
k
=EV
H
<0.
2m
Asquantummechanicsisdenedinacomplexspace,thisdoesnotposeanyproblem(wecanhavenegativekinetic
energiesevenifthetotalenergyispositive)andwecansolvefork

simplyndinganimaginarynumberk

=i,
V
2m
=
2
(V
H
E) (with real).
n
37

Thesolutionstotheeigenvalueproblemaresimilartowhatalreadyseen:
Ae
ikx
+Be
ikx

I
(x) =
Ce
ik

x
Ce
x

II
(x) = = ,
wherewetookD= 0as before.
Quantummechanicsallowsthe particletoentertheclassicalforbiddenregion, butthe wavefunctionbecomesa
vanishingexponentialfunction.Thismeansthatevenifthe particlecanindeedentertheforbiddenregion,itcannot
go very far, the probability of nding the particlefar away fromthe potential barrier (given byP(x >0)=|
II
(x)|
2
=
|C|
2
e
2x
) becomessmallerandsmaller.
Againwematchthefunctionanditsderivativesattheboundarytondthecoecients:

I
(0)=
II
(0) A+B =C

I

(0)=
II

(0) ik(AB) =C
withsolutions
ki 2k
B = A, C = A
k+i k+i
Thesituationintermsofuxisinsteadquitedierent.Wenowhavetheequality:k|B|
2
=k|A|
2
:
k|B|
2
=k
ki
k+i
2
k
2
+
2
=k =k.
k
2
+
2
Intermsofux,wecanwritethisrelationshipas =
R
,whichimpliesR =1andT =0.Thuswehaveno
transmission,justperfectreection,althoughthereisapenetrationoftheprobabilityintheforbiddenregion.This
canbecalledanevanescent transmittedwave.
3.2.2 Finite barrier
WenowconsideradierentpotentialwhichcreatesanitebarrierofheightV
H
betweenx=0andL.Asdepicted
inFig.15thispotentialdividesthespacein3regions.Againweconsidertwocases,wherethetotalenergyofthe
particleisgreaterorsmallerthanV
H
.Classically,weconsideraballinitiallyinRegionI.Theninthecasewhere
V
H
Region I Region II Region III
L 0 x
E
2
E
1
V(x)
Fig. 15: Finite barrier potential
E > V
H
theballcantraveleverywhere,inallthethreeregions,whileforE < V
H
itisgoingtobeconnedinRegion
I,andwehaveperfectreection.Wewillconsidernowthequantummechanicalcase.
A. Positive kinetic energy
FirstweconsiderthecasewhereE =EV
H
>0.Thekineticenergiesinthethreeregionsare
RegionI RegionII RegionIII
2 2

2 2
k
2
k
2
n n k n
T = =E T = =EV
H
T = =E
2m 2m 2m
38
38
Andthewavefunctionis
RegionI RegionII RegionIII
Ae
ikx
+Be
ikx
Ce
ik

x
+De
ik

x
Ee
ikx
(againweputthetermFe
ikx
= 0for physical reasons, inanalogywith theclassicalcase studied). Thecoecients
canbecalculatedbyconsideringtheboundaryconditions.
Inparticular,weareinterestedintheprobabilityoftransmissionofthebeamthroughthebarrierandintoregion
III. The transmission coecient is then the ratio of the outgoingux inRegion III to the incomingux inRegion I
(bothoftheseuxestraveltotheRight,sowelabelthembyR):
k|
R
|
2
k|E|
2
|E|
2
III
T = = =
k|
R
|
2
k|A|
2
|A|
2
I
whilethereectioncoecientistheratioofthereected(fromrighttoleft,labeledL) andincoming(fromleftto
right,labeledR) uxinRegionI:
k|
L
|
2
k|B|
2
|B|
2
I
R= = =
k|
R
|
2
k|A|
2
|A|
2
I
Wecansolveexplicitlytheboundaryconditions:

I
(0)=
II
(0)
II
(L) =
III
(L)

I

(0)=

=

II
(0)
II
(L)
III
(L)
andndthecoecientsB, C, D, E (Aisdeterminedfromtheuxintensity.Fromthefullsolutionwecanverify
thatT +R=1,asitshouldbephysically.
Obs.Noticethatwecouldalsohavefoundadierentsolution,e.g.inwhichwesetF 0andA= = 0,corresponding
toaparticleoriginatingfromtheright.
B. Negative Energy
InthecasewhereE =EV
H
<0,inregionIIweexpectasbeforeanimaginarymomentum.Infactwend
RegionI RegionII RegionIII
V V V
2mE 2m(VHE) 2mE
k= k

=i, =
2
k=
2 2
n n n
Andthewavefunctionis
RegionI RegionII RegionIII
Ae
ikx
+Be
ikx
Ce
x
+De
x
Ee
ikx
The dierencehereisthatanitetransmissionthroughthe barrieris possibleandthetransmissioncoecientis
notzero.Indeed,fromthefullsolutionoftheboundaryconditionproblem,wecanndasinthepreviouscasethe
coecientsT andR andwehaveT +R=1.
Thereisthusaprobabilitythattheparticletunnels throughthenitebarrierandappearsinRegionIII,then
continuingtox.
Obs.Althoughwehavebeendescribingthesituationintermsofwavetravelinginonedirectionortheother,what
wearedescribinghereisnotatime-dependentproblem.Thereisnotime-dependenceatallinthisproblem(allthe
solutionsareonlyafunctionofx,notoftime).Thisisthesamesituationasstationarywavesforexampleinarope.
Thestateofthesystemisnotevolving.Itisalways(atanytime)describedbythesamewavesandthusatanytime
wewillhavethesameoutcomesandprobabilityoutcomesforanymeasurement.
C. Estimates and scaling
Insteadofsolvingexactlytheproblemforthesecondcase,wetrytomakesomeestimatesinthecasethereisa
verysmalltunnelingprobability.InthiscasewehavethefollowingapproximationsforthecoecientsA,B,C and
D.
-AssumingT 1weexpectD0sinceifthereisaverysmallprobabilityfortheparticletobeinregionIII,the
probabilityofcomingbackfromitthroughthebarriermustbeevensmaller(inotherwords,ifD 0wewould =
haveanincreasingprobabilitytohaveawavecomingoutofthebarrier).
-Also,T 1impliesR1.ThismeansthatB/A1orB A.
39
- Matchingthewavefunctionatx=0,wehaveC =A+B 2A.
- Finallymatchingthewavefunctionatx=L weobtain:
Ce
L
2Ae
L
Ee
ikL
(L) = = =
k|
R
|
2
WecanthencalculatethetransmissionprobabilityT fromT =
III
,withtheseassumptions.Weobtain
k|
R
|
2
I
2L
k|E|
2
|E|
2
4|A|
2
e
2L
T = = = T = 4e
k|A|
2
|A|
2
|A|
2
Thusthetransmission probability dependsonthelengthofthe potential barrier(thelongerthe barriertheless
transmissionwehave,asitisintuitive)andonthecoecient.Noticethatdependsonthedierencebetweenthe
particleenergyandthe potentialstrength:Ifthe particleenergyisneartheedgeofthe potential barrier(thatis,
E 0)then0andtheresahighprobabilityoftunneling.Thiscaseishoweveragainstourrstassumptions
ofsmalltunneling(thatswhyweobtaintheunphysicalresultthatT 4!!).Thecaseweareconsideringisinstead
wherethe particleenergyissmallcomparedtothe potential,sothat islarge,andtheparticlehasaverylow
probabilityoftunnelingthrough.
40

3.3 Alpha decay
Ifwego backtothe bindingenergy permassnumber plot (B/A vs.A)weseethatthereisabump(apeak)for
A60100.Thismeansthatthereisacorrespondingminimum(orenergyoptimum)aroundthesenumbers.Then
theheaviernucleiwillwanttodecaytowardthislighternuclides,bysheddingsomeprotonsandneutrons.More
specically,thedecreaseinbindingenergyathighA isduetoCoulombrepulsion.Coulombrepulsiongrowsinfact
asZ
2
,muchfasterthanthenuclearforcewhichisA.
Thiscould be thoughtas a similar process to what happens in the ssion process: from a parentnuclide, two daughter
nuclidesarecreated.Inthe decaywehavespecically:
A A4
Z
X
N
X
N2
+
Z2
where isthenucleusofHe-4:
4
2
He
2
.
Thedecayshould be competingwith other processes, suchas the ssion into equal daughter nuclides, or into pairs
including
12
Cor
16
OthathavelargerB/Athen.However decayisusuallyfavored.Inordertounderstandthis,
we start bylookingat the energetic of the decay, but wewill need to studythe quantum origin of the decayto arrive
atafullexplanation.
Particle
2
4
He
Image by MIT OpenCourseWare.
Fig. 16: Alpha decay schematics
3.3.1 Energetics
In analyzinga radioactive decay (oranynuclear reaction)an important quantityisQ,thenetenergyreleasedinthe
decay:Q= (m
X
m
X
m

)c
2
.Thisisalsoequaltothetotalkineticenergyofthefragments,hereQ=T
X
+T

(hereassumingthattheparentnuclideisatrest).
WhenQ > 0energyisreleasedinthenuclearreaction,whileforQ < 0weneedtoprovideenergytomakethe
reactionhappen.Asinchemistry,weexpecttherstreactiontobeaspontaneousreaction,whilethesecondone
doesnothappeninnaturewithoutintervention.(Therstreactionisexo-energeticthesecondendo-energetic).
NoticethatitsnocoincidencethatitscalledQ.In practicegivensomereagentsand products,Qgivethequality of
the reaction,i.e. howenergetically favorable, hence probable, it is. Forexample in the alpha-decay log (t
1/2
)
Q

1
,
whichistheGeiger-Nuttallrule(1928).
Thealphaparticlecarriesawaymostofthekineticenergy(sinceitismuchlighter)andbymeasuringthiskinetic
energyexperimentallyitispossibletoknowthemassesofunstablenuclides.
WecancalculateQ usingtheSEMF.Then:

=B(
A4
X
N2
) +B(
4
He) B(
A
=B(A4, Z2)B(A,Z) +B(
4
He) Q
Z
X
N
)
Z2
Wecanapproximatethenitedierencewiththerelevantgradient:
B B
Q

= [B(A4, Z2)B(A,Z2)] +[B(A,Z2)B(A,Z)] +B(

4
He) =4 2 +B(
4
He)
A Z
2
8 Z Z 2Z
A
7/4
=28.3 4a
v
+ a
s
A
1/3
+4a
c
1 4a
sym
1 +3a
p
A
1/3
3 3A A
41

Sincewearelookingatheavynuclei,weknowthatZ 0.41A (insteadofZ A/2)andweobtain
Q

36.68 +44.9A
1/3
+1.02A
2/3
,
wherethesecondtermcomesfromthesurfacecontributionandthelasttermistheCoulombterm(weneglectthe
pairingterm,sinceaprioriwedonotknowifa
p
iszeroornot).
Then,theCoulombterm,althoughsmall,makesQ increaseatlargeA.WendthatQ 0forA 150,anditis
Q6MeVforA=200.AlthoughQ >0,wendexperimentallythat decayonlyariseforA200.
Further,takeforexample Francium-200 (
200
Fr
113
).IfwecalculateQ

fromtheexperimentallyfoundmass dierences
87
weobtainQ

7.6MeV(theproductis
196
At).Wecandothesamecalculationforthehypotheticaldecayintoa
12
Candremainingfragment (
188
81
Tl
107
):
Z
X
N
) m(
A12
Q12
C
=c
2
[m(
A
X
N6
) m(
12
C)]28MeV
Z6
Thusthissecondreactionseemstobemoreenergetic,hencemorefavorablethanthealpha-decay,yetitdoesnot
occur(somedecaysinvolvingC-12havebeenobserved,buttheirbranchingratiosaremuchsmaller).
Thus, lookingonly at theenergetic of the decay does notexplain some questions that surround the alpha decay:
- Whytheresno
12
C-decay?(ortosomeofthistightlyboundnuclides,e.gO-16etc.)
- Whytheresnospontaneousssionintoequaldaughters?
- WhytheresalphadecayonlyforA200?

1
- WhatistheexplanationofGeiger-Nuttallrule?logt
1/2

Q
3.3.2 Quantum mechanics description of alpha decay
Wewilluseasemi-classicalmodel(thatis,combiningquantummechanicswithclassicalphysics)toanswerthe
questionsabove.
Inordertostudythequantummechanicalprocessunderlyingalphadecay,weconsidertheinteractionbetweenthe
daughternuclideandthealphaparticle.Justpriortoseparation,wecanconsiderthispairtobealreadypresent
inside theparentnuclide,inaboundstate.Wewilldescribethispairofparticlesintheircenter of mass coordinate
frames: thus we are interested in the relativemotion (and kinetic energy)of the two particles. Asoften done in these
situations,wecandescribetherelativemotionoftwoparticlesasthemotionofasingleparticleofreducedmass

mm
= (wherem isthemassofthedaughternuclide).
m+m

Considerforexamplethereaction
238
U
234
Th+.WhatistheinteractionbetweentheThandalphaparticlein
theboundstate?
- Atshortdistancewehavethenuclearforcebindingthe
238
U.
- Atlongdistances,thecoulombinteractionpredominates
The nuclear force is a verystrong, attractive force, while the Coulomb forceamong protons is repulsive and will tend
toexpelthealphaparticle.
SincethenalstateisknowntohaveanenergyQ

= 4.3MeV,wewilltakethisenergytobeaswelltheinitial
energy of the two particlesin the potentialwell (weassume thatQ

=E sinceQ isthekineticenergywhilethe
potentialenergy iszero). The size of the potential wellcan becalculatedas the sum of the daughter nuclide (
234
Th)
andalpharadii:
R=R

+R

=R
0
((234)
1/3
+4
1/3
) = 9.3fm.

Ontheotherside,theCoulombenergyatthisseparationisV
Coul
=e
2
Z

Z

/R=28MeV Q

(hereZ =Z2).
Then,theparticlesareinsideawell,withahighbarrier(asV
Coul
Q) butthereissomeprobabilityoftunneling,
sinceQ >0andthestateisnotstablybound.
Thus,iftheparentnuclide,
238
U,wasreallycomposedofanalpha-particleandofthedaughternuclide,
234
Th,
thenwithsomeprobabilitythesystemwouldbeinaboundstateandwithsomeprobabilityinadecayedstate,
withthealpha particleoutsidethe potentialbarrier.Thislast probabilitycanbecalculatedfromthetunneling
probabilityP
T
westudiedintheprevioussection,givenbytheamplitudesquareofthewavefunctionoutsidethe
barrier,P
T
=|(R
out
)|
2
.
Howdowerelatethisprobabilitytothedecayrate?
WeneedtomultiplytheprobabilityoftunnelingP
T
bythefrequencyf atwhich
238
Ucouldactuallybefoundas
beingintwofragments
234
Th+ (althoughstillboundtogetherinsidethepotentialbarrier).Thedecayrateisthen
givenby

=f P
T
.
Toestimatethefrequencyf,weequateitwiththefrequencyatwhichthecompoundparticleinthecenterofmass
frameisatthewellboundary:f =v
in
/R,wherev
in
isthevelocityoftheparticleswhentheyareinsidethewell
42
-2
0
2
4
6
8
10
Q

V
Z
MeV
Nucleus- separation (fm)
10 ... 60 70 80
R R
c
Fig. 17: Potential well for alpha decay tunneling. The inner radius is R while the intersection of Q with the potential is Rc
(not to scale).
Lab frame Center of mass frame
R
parent
daughter
Compound

R
Fig. 18: Positions of daughter and alpha particles in the nucleus, as seen in (left) the laboratory frame and (right) in the center
of mass frame. When the relative distance is zero, this correspond to a undivided (parent) nuclide. When the relative distance
is R, it corresponds to a separate alpha and daughter nuclide inside the nucleus.
2
(seecartooningure18).Wehave
1
mv =Q

+V
0
40MeV,fromwhichwehavev
in
4 10
22
fm/s.Thenthe
2 in
frequencyisf 4.3 10
21
.
Theprobabilityoftunnelingisgivenbytheamplitudesquareofthewavefunctionjustoutsidethebarrier,P
T
=
|(R
c
)|
2
,whereR
c
isthecoordinateatwhichV
Coul
(R
c
) =Q

,suchthattheparticlehasagainapositivekinetic
energy:

e
2
Z

Z
R
c
= 63fm
Q

Recall that in thecase of a square barrier, we expressed the wavefunction inside a barrier (in theclassically forbidden
region)as a plane wavewithimaginarymomentum, hence a decayingexponential
in
(r) e
r
. Whatistherelevant
momentum1here? Since the potential is no longer a square barrier, we expect themomentum (and kinetic energy)
tobeafunctionofposition.
43



ThetotalenergyisgivenbyE =Q

andisthesumofthepotential(Coulomb)andkineticenergy.Asweveseen
thattheCoulombenergyishigherthanQ,weknowthatthekineticenergyisnegative:
1
2
k
2
Z

Z

e
2
Q

=T +V
Coul
= +
2 r
with thereducedmass

m

m
=
m

m

+
andk
2
=
2
(withR).Thisequationisvalidatanypositioninsidethebarrier:

J

e
2
(r) =
2 2 Z

Z
[V
Coul
(r) Q

] = Q

1
2
1
2
r
Ifweweretoconsiderasmallsliceofthebarrier,fromr tor+dr,thentheprobabilitytopassthroughthisbarrier
wouldbedP
T
(r) =e
2(r)dr
.Ifwedividethenthetotalbarrierrangeintosmallslices,thenalprobabilityisthe
productoftheprobabilitiesdP
k
ofpassingthroughalloftheslices.Thenlog (P
T
) =
L
log(dP
k
)andtakingthe
T k T
J
Rc
J
Rc
continuouslimitlog (P
T
) = log [dP
T
(r)]=2 (r)dr.
R R
FinallytheprobabilityoftunnelingisgivenbyP
T
=e
2G
,whereG iscalculatedfromtheintegral

RC

RC
e
2
G= dr(r) = dr
2 Z

Z
Q

1
2
r
R R
2
ZZ

e
Wecansolvetheintegralanalytically,bylettingr=R
c
y=y
Q
,then

1
J
Z

Z
0
e 2c
2
1
G= dy 1
1c Q

y
R/RC
whichyields
2

J J

Z e 2c
2
R R R Z

Z e 2c
2
R
G= arccos 1 = g
1c Q

R
c
R
c
R
c
1c Q

2 R
c
wheretosimplifythenotationweusedthefunction
2
(
J
)
g(x) = arccos(x) x 1 x
2
.

Finallythedecayrateisgivenby
v
in
2G

= e
R
whereG istheso-calledGamowfactor.
InordertogetsomeinsightonthebehaviorofG weconsidertheapproximationRR
c
:

J

J
1 E
G
R 1 E
G
4 R
G= g 1
2 Q

R
c
2 Q

R
c
whereE
G
istheGamowenergy:
E
G
=
2Z

Ze
2
1c
2
c
2
2
(V )
Forexampleforthe
238
UdecaystudiedE
G
=122,000MeV(huge!)sothat
J
E
G
/Q

=171whileg
R
0.518.
Rc
2G 89
Theexponentisthusalargenumber,givingaverylowtunnelingprobabily:e =e = 410
39
.Then,

= 1.6 10
17
sort
1/2
= 4.5 10
9
years,closetowhatobserved.
These results nally giveananswerto the questions we had regarding alpha decay. The decay probabilityhas a very
strongdependenceonnotonlyQ

butalsoonZ
1
Z
2
(whereZ
i
arethenumberofprotonsinthetwodaughters).
Thisleadstothefollowingobservations:
44



- Othertypesof decayarelesslikely, because theCoulombenergy would increaseconsiderably, thus the barrier
becomestoohightobeovercome.
- Thesameistrueforspontaneousssion,despitethefactthatQ ismuch higher (200MeV).
- Wethusndthatalphadecayistheoptimalmechanism.Still,itcanhappenonlyforA 200exactly because
otherwisethetunnelingprobabilityisverysmall.
- TheGeiger-Nuttalllawisadirectconsequenceofthequantumtunnelingtheory.Also,thelargevariationsofthe
decayrateswithQ areaconsequenceoftheexponentialdependenceonQ.
Analwordofcautionaboutthemodel:thesemi-classicalmodelusedtodescribethealphadecaygivesquite
accurate predictionsofthe decayrates overmanyorderofmagnitudes.Howeveritis notto betakenasanindication
thattheparentnucleusisreallyalreadycontaininganalphaparticleandadaughternucleus(only,itbehavesasif
itwere,aslongaswecalculatethealphadecayrates).
45
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46
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22.02 Introduction to Applied Nuclear Physics
Spring 2012
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