Nuclear density-functional theory and fission of super-heavy elements

TL;DR

This paper reviews how self-consistent mean-field models, especially Skyrme-Hartree-Fock, predict fission properties of super-heavy elements, highlighting the complex interplay of various nuclear factors affecting fission stability.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the theoretical tools and uncertainties in modeling super-heavy element fission using Skyrme-Hartree-Fock models.

Findings

Fission stability depends on bulk properties, pairing, and shell effects.

Fission processes involve multiple influential factors with comparable impact.

The study emphasizes the complexity of fission in super-heavy elements.

Abstract

We review the prediction of fission properties of super-heavy elements (SHE) by self-consistent mean-field models thereby concentrating on the widely used Skyrme-Hartree-Fock (SHF) approach. We explain briefly the theoretical tools: the SHF model, the calibration of model parameters together with statistical analysis of uncertainties and correlations, and the involved computation of fission lifetimes. We present an overview of fission stability in comparison to other decay channels over the whole landscape of SHE reaching deep into the $r$-process domain. The main emphasis lies on a detailed discussion of the various ingredients determining eventually the fission properties. The main result is that fission is an involved process which explores many different influences with almost equal share, basic bulk properties (also known as liquid-drop model parameters), pairing strengths, and shell effects. %