Ab initio calculations of beta-decay half-lives for N=50 neutron-rich nuclei

Key Points

The inclusion of two-body currents increases beta-decay half-lives, enhancing predictive accuracy.
Total beta-decay half-lives show good agreement with experimental data, validating the computational method.
Ab initio calculations apply chiral effective field theory to derive valence-space Hamiltonians effectively.
First-forbidden contributions are explored alongside Gamow-Teller transitions for comprehensive analysis.

Abstract

Beta-decay rates of extreme neutron-rich nuclei remain largely unknown experimentally, while they are critical inputs for r-process nucleosynthesis. We present first ab initio calculations of total beta-decay half-lives, with a focus on N=50 nuclei. Starting from nuclear forces and currents based on chiral effective field theory, we use the in-medium similarity renormalization group to consistently derive valence-space Hamiltonians and weak operators, from which we calculate the nuclear states involved and the Gamow-Teller transition strengths, without phenomenological adjustments. In addition, we explore effects of first-forbidden contributions. Our results show that the inclusion of two-body currents increases the total half-lives, which then show good agreement with the existing experimental data, thereby validating the predictive capability of our approach.

Ab initio calculations of beta-decay half-lives for N=50 neutron-rich nuclei

Key Points

Abstract

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