Curium-248

Properties and data of the isotope ²⁴⁸Cm.

Contents

General data

Name of the isotope:Curium-248; Cm-248Symbol:²⁴⁸Cm or 24896CmMass number A:248 (= number of nucleons)Atomic number Z:96 (= number of protons)Neutrons N:152Isotopic mass:248.0723491(25) u (atomic weight of Curium-248)Nuclide mass:248.0196928 u (calculated nuclear mass without electrons)Mass excess:67.39275 MeVMass defect:1.995921204 u (per nucleus)Nuclear binding energy:1859.188626 MeV (per nucleus)
7.49672833 MeV (average binding energy per nucleon)Separation energy:S_N = 6.212(4) MeV (first neutron)
S_P = 7.05(10) MeV (first proton)Half-life:3.48(6) × 10⁵ aDecay constant λ:6.315962328773 × 10^-14 s^-1Specific activity α:153369414.55616 Bq g^-1
0.0041451193123286 Ci g^-1Spin and parity:
(nuclear angular momentum)0+Charge radius:5.8687(193) femtometer fmYear of discovery:1956

Radioactive Decay

Half-life T_½ = 3.48(6) × 10⁵ a respectively 1.097453 × 10¹³ seconds s.

Decay mode	Daughter	Probability	Decay energy	γ energy (intensity)
α	²⁴⁴Pu	91.61(16) %	5.16181(25) MeV
SZ	^div	8.39(16) %

Parent Nuclides

Direct parent isotopes are: ²⁵²Cf, ²⁴⁸Bk.

Isotones and Isobars

The following table shows the atomic nuclei that are isotonic (same neutron number N = 152) and isobaric (same nucleon number A = 248) with Curium-248. Naturally occurring isotopes are marked in green; light green = naturally occurring radionuclides.

Z	Isotone N = 152	Isobar A = 248
94	²⁴⁶Pu
95	²⁴⁷Am	²⁴⁸Am
96	²⁴⁸Cm	²⁴⁸Cm
97	²⁴⁹Bk	²⁴⁸Bk
98	²⁵⁰Cf	²⁴⁸Cf
99	²⁵¹Es	²⁴⁸Es
100	²⁵²Fm	²⁴⁸Fm
101	²⁵³Md	²⁴⁸Md
102	²⁵⁴No
103	²⁵⁵Lr
104	²⁵⁶Rf
105	²⁵⁷Db
106	²⁵⁸Sg