Can extreme electromagnetic fields accelerate the $α$ decay of nuclei?

Abstract

The possibility to control the α decay channel of atomic nuclei with electromagnetic fields of extreme intensities envisaged for the near future at multi-petawatt and exawatt laser facilities is investigated theoretically. Using both analytic arguments based on the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin approximation and numerical calculations for the imaginary time method applied in the framework of the α decay precluster model, we show that no experimentally detectable modification of the α decay rate can be observed with super-intense lasers at any so-far available wavelength. Comparing our predictions with those reported in several recent publications, where a considerable or even giant laser-induced enhancement of the decay rate has been claimed, we identify there the misuse of a standard approximation.

Advances in QED with intense background fields

“…A clear discussion of the extent to which α-decays may be controlled with intense electromagnetic fields, highlighting relevant dimensionless parameters and identifying the limitations of is given by [988], along with illustrative estimates of the lifetime shifts of several typical isotopes. That paper also identifies shortcomings of earlier works which claim extreme modifications of decay rates.…”

Substantially enhanced deuteron-triton fusion probabilities in intense low-frequency laser fields

“…Light with intensities on the order of 10 21 to 10 22 W/cm 2 can be generated nowadays, and further increase for another one or two orders of magnitude can be expected in the near future, for example, with the Extreme Light Infrastructure of Europe [11,12]. The possibility of using intense laser fields to influence nuclear processes, such as alpha decay, is intriguing and has attracted attention [13][14][15][16][17].…”