Isotopes of curium

Curium (₉₆Cm) is an artificial element with an atomic number of 96. Because it is an artificial element, a standard atomic weight cannot be given, and it has no stable isotopes. The first isotope synthesized was ²⁴²Cm in 1944, which has 146 neutrons.

Isotopes of curium (₉₆Cm)

Main isotopes[1] Decay abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct 242Cm synth 162.8 d α 238Pu SF – CD 208Pb 243Cm synth 29.1 y α 239Pu ε 243Am SF – 244Cm synth 18.11 y α 240Pu SF – 245Cm synth 8250 y α 241Pu SF – 246Cm synth 4760 y α 242Pu SF – 247Cm synth 1.56×107 y α 243Pu 248Cm synth 3.480×105 y α 244Pu SF – 250Cm synth 8300 y SF – α 246Pu β− 250Bk

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There are 19 known radioisotopes ranging from ²³³Cm to ²⁵¹Cm. There are also ten known nuclear isomers. The longest-lived isotope is ²⁴⁷Cm, with half-life 15.6 million years – orders of magnitude longer than that of any known isotope beyond curium, and long enough to study as a possible extinct radionuclide that would be produced by the r-process.^[2][3] The longest-lived isomer is ^246mCm with a half-life of 1.12 seconds.

List of isotopes

Nuclide [n 1]	Z	N	Isotopic mass (Da) [n 2][n 3]	Half-life [n 4]	Decay mode [n 5]	Daughter isotope	Spin and parity [n 6][n 4]
	Excitation energy[n 4]
233Cm	96	137	233.05077(8)	23+13 −6 s	β+ (80%)	233Am	3/2+#
					α (20%)	229Pu
234Cm	96	138	234.05016(2)	52(9) s	β+ (71%)	234Am	0+
					α (27%)	230Pu
					SF (2%)	(various)
235Cm[4]	96	139	235.05143(22)#	300+250 −100 s	β+ (99.0%)	235Am	(5/2+)
					α (1.0%)	231Pu
236Cm	96	140	236.05141(22)#	6.8(8) min	β+ (82%)	236Am	0+
					α (18%)	232Pu
					SF (<0.1%)[5]	(various)
237Cm[6][4]	96	141	237.05290(22)#	>660 s	β+	237Am	(5/2+)
					α (<1%)	233Pu
238Cm[6]	96	142	238.05303(4)	2.2(4) h	EC (~94%)	238Am	0+
					α (~6%)	234Pu
239Cm[1]	96	143	239.05496(11)#	2.5(4) h	β+	239Am	(7/2−)
					α (6.2x10−3%)	235Pu
240Cm	96	144	240.0555295(25)	27(1) d	α (99.5%)	236Pu	0+
					EC (.5%)	240Am
					SF (3.9×10−6%)	(various)
241Cm	96	145	241.0576530(23)	32.8(2) d	EC (99%)	241Am	1/2+
					α (1%)	237Pu
242Cm[n 7]	96	146	242.0588358(20)	162.8(2) d	α[n 8]	238Pu	0+
					SF (6.33×10−6%)	(various)
					CD (10−14%)[n 9]	208Pb 34Si
242mCm	2800(100) keV			180(70) ns
243Cm	96	147	243.0613891(22)	29.1(1) y	α (99.71%)	239Pu	5/2+
					EC (.29%)	243Am
					SF (5.3×10−9%)	(various)
243mCm	87.4(1) keV			1.08(3) μs	IT	243Cm	1/2+
244Cm[n 7]	96	148	244.0627526(20)	18.10(2) y	α	240Pu	0+
					SF (1.34×10−4%)	(various)
244m1Cm	1040.188(12) keV			34(2) ms	IT	244Cm	6+
244m2Cm	1100(900)# keV			>500 ns	SF	(various)
245Cm	96	149	245.0654912(22)	8.5(1)×103 y	α	241Pu	7/2+
					SF (6.1×10−7%)	(various)
245mCm	355.92(10) keV			290(20) ns	IT	245Cm	1/2+
246Cm	96	150	246.0672237(22)	4.76(4)×103 y	α (99.97%)	242Pu	0+
					SF (.0261%)	(various)
246mCm	1179.66(13) keV			1.12(0.24) s	IT	246Cm	8−
247Cm	96	151	247.070354(5)	1.56(5)×107 y	α	243Pu	9/2−
247m1Cm	227.38(19) keV			26.3(0.3) μs	IT	247Cm	5/2+
247m2Cm	404.90(3) keV			100.6(0.6) ns	IT	247Cm	1/2+
248Cm	96	152	248.072349(5)	3.48(6)×105 y	α (91.74%)	244Pu	0+
					SF (8.26%)	(various)
248mCm	1458.1(1) keV			146(18) μs	IT	248Cm	(8−)
249Cm	96	153	249.075953(5)	64.15(3) min	β−	249Bk	1/2(+)
249mCm	48.758(17) keV			23 μs	α	245Pu	(7/2+)
250Cm	96	154	250.078357(12)	8300# y	SF (74%)[n 10]	(various)	0+
					α (18%)	246Pu
					β− (8%)	250Bk
251Cm	96	155	251.082285(24)	16.8(2) min	β−	251Bk	(1/2+)
This table header & footer: view

1. ^mCm – Excited nuclear isomer.
2. ( ) – Uncertainty (1σ) is given in concise form in parentheses after the corresponding last digits.
3. # – Atomic mass marked #: value and uncertainty derived not from purely experimental data, but at least partly from trends from the Mass Surface (TMS).
4. # – Values marked # are not purely derived from experimental data, but at least partly from trends of neighboring nuclides (TNN).
5. Modes of decay:

   CD:	Cluster decay
   EC:	Electron capture
   SF:	Spontaneous fission

6. ( ) spin value – Indicates spin with weak assignment arguments.
7. Most common isotopes
8. Theoretically capable of β⁺β⁺ decay to ²⁴²Pu^[1]
9. Heaviest known nuclide to undergo cluster decay
10. The nuclide with the lowest atomic number known to undergo spontaneous fission as the main decay mode

Actinides vs fission products

Actinides and fission products by half-life v t e
Actinides[7] by decay chain				Half-life range (a)	Fission products of 235U by yield[8]
4n	4n + 1	4n + 2	4n + 3		4.5–7%	0.04–1.25%	<0.001%
228Ra№				4–6 a		155Euþ
248Bk[9]				> 9 a
244Cmƒ	241Puƒ	250Cf	227Ac№	10–29 a	90Sr	85Kr	113mCdþ
232Uƒ		238Puƒ	243Cmƒ	29–97 a	137Cs	151Smþ	121mSn
	249Cfƒ	242mAmƒ		141–351 a	No fission products have a half-life in the range of 100 a–210 ka ...
	241Amƒ		251Cfƒ[10]	430–900 a
		226Ra№	247Bk	1.3–1.6 ka
240Pu	229Th	246Cmƒ	243Amƒ	4.7–7.4 ka
	245Cmƒ	250Cm		8.3–8.5 ka
			239Puƒ	24.1 ka
		230Th№	231Pa№	32–76 ka
236Npƒ	233Uƒ	234U№		150–250 ka	99Tc₡	126Sn
248Cm		242Pu		327–375 ka		79Se₡
				1.33 Ma	135Cs₡
	237Npƒ			1.61–6.5 Ma	93Zr	107Pd
236U			247Cmƒ	15–24 Ma		129I₡
244Pu				80 Ma	... nor beyond 15.7 Ma[11]
232Th№		238U№	235Uƒ№	0.7–14.1 Ga
₡,  has thermal neutron capture cross section in the range of 8–50 barns ƒ,  fissile №,  primarily a naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) þ,  neutron poison (thermal neutron capture cross section greater than 3k barns)

References

1. Kondev, F. G.; Wang, M.; Huang, W. J.; Naimi, S.; Audi, G. (2021). "The NUBASE2020 evaluation of nuclear properties" (PDF). Chinese Physics C. 45 (3): 030001. doi:10.1088/1674-1137/abddae.
2. Côté, Benoit; Eichler, Marius; Yagüe López, Andrés; Vassh, Nicole; Mumpower, Matthew R.; Világos, Blanka; Soós, Benjámin; Arcones, Almudena; Sprouse, Trevor M.; Surman, Rebecca; Pignatari, Marco; Pető, Mária K.; Wehmeyer, Benjamin; Rauscher, Thomas; Lugaro, Maria (26 February 2021). "¹²⁹I and ²⁴⁷Cm in meteorites constrain the last astrophysical source of solar r-process elements". Science. 371 (6532): 945–948. arXiv:2006.04833. Bibcode:2021Sci...371..945C. doi:10.1126/science.aba1111. PMID 33632846. S2CID 232050526.
3. Davis, A.M.; McKeegan, K.D. (2014). "Short-Lived Radionuclides and Early Solar System Chronology". Treatise on Geochemistry: 383. doi:10.1016/B978-0-08-095975-7.00113-3. ISBN 9780080983004.
4. Khuyagbaatar, J.; Heßberger, F. P.; Hofmann, S.; Ackermann, D.; Burkhard, H. G.; Heinz, S.; Kindler, B.; Kojouharov, I.; Lommel, B.; Mann, R.; Maurer, J.; Nishio, K. (12 October 2020). "α decay of Fm 243 143 and Fm 245 145 , and of their daughter nuclei". Physical Review C. 102 (4): 044312. doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.102.044312. ISSN 2469-9985. S2CID 241259726. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
5. Khuyagbaatar, J.; Heßberger, F. P.; Hofmann, S.; Ackermann, D.; Comas, V. S.; Heinz, S.; Heredia, J. A.; Kindler, B.; Kojouharov, I.; Lommel, B.; Mann, R.; Nishio, K.; Yakushev, A. (1 October 2010). "The new isotope ²³⁶Cm and new data on ²³³Cm and ^{237, 238, 240}Cf" (PDF). The European Physical Journal A. 46 (1): 59–67. Bibcode:2010EPJA...46...59K. doi:10.1140/epja/i2010-11026-9. ISSN 1434-601X. S2CID 122809010. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
6. Asai, M.; Tsukada, K.; Ichikawa, S.; Sakama, M.; Haba, H.; Nishinaka, I.; Nagame, Y.; Goto, S.; Kojima, Y.; Oura, Y.; Shibata, M. (20 June 2006). "α decay of ²³⁸Cm and the new isotope ²³⁷Cm". Physical Review C. 73 (6): 067301. doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.73.067301. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
7. Plus radium (element 88). While actually a sub-actinide, it immediately precedes actinium (89) and follows a three-element gap of instability after polonium (84) where no nuclides have half-lives of at least four years (the longest-lived nuclide in the gap is radon-222 with a half life of less than four days). Radium's longest lived isotope, at 1,600 years, thus merits the element's inclusion here.
8. Specifically from thermal neutron fission of uranium-235, e.g. in a typical nuclear reactor.
9. Milsted, J.; Friedman, A. M.; Stevens, C. M. (1965). "The alpha half-life of berkelium-247; a new long-lived isomer of berkelium-248". Nuclear Physics. 71 (2): 299. Bibcode:1965NucPh..71..299M. doi:10.1016/0029-5582(65)90719-4.
   "The isotopic analyses disclosed a species of mass 248 in constant abundance in three samples analysed over a period of about 10 months. This was ascribed to an isomer of Bk²⁴⁸ with a half-life greater than 9 [years]. No growth of Cf²⁴⁸ was detected, and a lower limit for the β⁻ half-life can be set at about 10⁴ [years]. No alpha activity attributable to the new isomer has been detected; the alpha half-life is probably greater than 300 [years]."
10. This is the heaviest nuclide with a half-life of at least four years before the "sea of instability".
11. Excluding those "classically stable" nuclides with half-lives significantly in excess of ²³²Th; e.g., while ^113mCd has a half-life of only fourteen years, that of ¹¹³Cd is eight quadrillion years.

• Isotope masses from:
  • Audi, Georges; Bersillon, Olivier; Blachot, Jean; Wapstra, Aaldert Hendrik (2003), "The NUBASE evaluation of nuclear and decay properties", Nuclear Physics A, 729: 3–128, Bibcode:2003NuPhA.729....3A, doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2003.11.001
• Half-life, spin, and isomer data selected from the following sources.
  • Audi, Georges; Bersillon, Olivier; Blachot, Jean; Wapstra, Aaldert Hendrik (2003), "The NUBASE evaluation of nuclear and decay properties", Nuclear Physics A, 729: 3–128, Bibcode:2003NuPhA.729....3A, doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2003.11.001
  • National Nuclear Data Center. "NuDat 2.x database". Brookhaven National Laboratory.
  • Holden, Norman E. (2004). "11. Table of the Isotopes". In Lide, David R. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (85th ed.). Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-0485-9.