Nickel-63

Properties and data of the isotope ⁶³Ni.

Contents

General Data

Radioactive Decay

Parent Nuclides

Use

Isotones und Isobares

Literature

Nickel-63 is a radioisotope of the chemical element Nickel, which, in addition to the element-specific 28 protons, has 35 neutrons in the atomic nucleus, resulting in the mass number 63. The atomic nucleus decays to the stable isotope copper-63 with a half-life of 101.2 years.

Nickel-63 is a radioactive isotope that can only be accessed artificially and does not occur in nature. ⁶³Ni is produced synthetically by neutron irradiation of the stable isotope Nickel-62 in a nuclear reactor (⁶²Ni(n, γ)⁶³Ni).

General data

Name of the isotope:Nickel-63; Ni-63Symbol:⁶³Ni or 6328NiMass number A:63 (= number of nucleons)Atomic number Z:28 (= number of protons)Neutrons N:35Isotopic mass:62.9296690(5) u (atomic weight of Nickel-63)Nuclide mass:62.9143092 u (calculated nuclear mass without electrons)Mass excess:-65.5129 MeVMass defect:0.59270395600001 u (per nucleus)Nuclear binding energy:552.10017879 MeV (per nucleus)
8.7634949 MeV (average binding energy per nucleon)Separation energy:S_N = 6.83777(6) MeV (first neutron)
S_P = 11.377(19) MeV (first proton)Half-life:101.2(15) aDecay constant λ:2.171894757726 × 10^-10 s^-1Specific activity α:2109589703869.1 Bq g^-1
57.015937942408 Ci g^-1Spin and parity:
(nuclear angular momentum)1/2-Magnetic dipole moment:μ(μ_N) = +0.496(5)Nuclear g-factor:g_l = 0.992Year of discovery:1951

Radioactive Decay

Nickel-63 is a soft, pure beta emitter with an average energy of 17.425(6) keV and a maximum energy of 66.977(15) keV.

Half-life T_½ = 101.2(15) a respectively 3.19144 × 10⁹ seconds s.

Decay mode	Daughter	Probability	Decay energy	γ energy (intensity)
β^-	⁶³Cu	100 %	0.066977(15) MeV

Production and radioactive decay of nickel-63

Parent Nuclides

Direct parent isotope is: ⁶³Co.

Use

As a β-^--emitter (beta-emitter), nickel-63 emits electrons during radioactive decay. The isotope is therefore used as an electron source, for example in electron capture detectors or in ion generators in ion mobility spectrometry.

More recently there have been media reports about the use of Ni-63 in so-called beta-voltaic power sources ; These convert the radioactive radiation into electrical current and, due to their small size, can probably also be used in portable devices as a battery replacement. However, the research and technical implementation of this has not yet been completed.

The betavoltaic effect, analogous to photovoltaics, causes the formation of electron-hole pairs in semiconductors with a p-n junction, which results in a current flow - here, however, under the influence of β-particles and not through the influence of light.

Nuclear Isomers

Nuclear isomers or excited states with the activation energy in keV related to the ground state.

Nuclear Isomer	Excitation Energy	Half-life	Spin
^63mNi	87.15(11) keV	1.67(3) μs	5/2-

Isotones and Isobars

The following table shows the atomic nuclei that are isotonic (same neutron number N = 35) and isobaric (same nucleon number A = 63) with Nickel-63. Naturally occurring isotopes are marked in green; light green = naturally occurring radionuclides.

Z	Isotone N = 35	Isobar A = 63
18	⁵³Ar
19	⁵⁴K
20	⁵⁵Ca
21	⁵⁶Sc
22	⁵⁷Ti	⁶³Ti
23	⁵⁸V	⁶³V
24	⁵⁹Cr	⁶³Cr
25	⁶⁰Mn	⁶³Mn
26	⁶¹Fe	⁶³Fe
27	⁶²Co	⁶³Co
28	⁶³Ni	⁶³Ni
29	⁶⁴Cu	⁶³Cu
30	⁶⁵Zn	⁶³Zn
31	⁶⁶Ga	⁶³Ga
32	⁶⁷Ge	⁶³Ge
33	⁶⁸As	⁶³As
34	⁶⁹Se	⁶³Se
35	⁷⁰Br
36	⁷¹Kr
37	⁷²Rb
38	⁷³Sr