Fluorine-13

Properties and data of the isotope ¹³F.

Contents

Fluorine-13 is a proton-rich radioisotope of the chemical element fluorine, which, in addition to the element-specific 9 protons, has 4 neutrons in the atomic nucleus, resulting in the mass number 13. The very short-lived, unstable and therefore radioactive nuclide, which can only be produced artificially, has no practical significance; The study of ¹³F serves exclusively academic purposes. The isotope was first described in the literature in 2021 [1].

See also: List of individual Fluorine isotopes (and general data sources).

General data

Name of the isotope:Fluorine-13; F-13Symbol:¹³F or 139FMass number A:13 (= number of nucleons)Atomic number Z:9 (= number of protons)Neutrons N:4Isotopic mass:13.04512(54) u (atomic weight of Fluorine-13)Nuclide mass:13.0401828 u (calculated nuclear mass without electrons)Mass excess:42.02901 MeVMass defect:0.059964951999998 u (per nucleus)Nuclear binding energy:55.856993 MeV (per nucleus)
4.29669177 MeV (average binding energy per nucleon)Half-life:Spin and parity:
(nuclear angular momentum)(1/2+)Mirror nucleus:Beryllium-13Year of discovery:2020

Radioactive Decay

Decay mode	Daughter	Probability	Decay energy	γ energy (intensity)
p	¹²O	?

Isotones and Isobars

The following table shows the atomic nuclei that are isotonic (same neutron number N = 4) and isobaric (same nucleon number A = 13) with Fluorine-13. Naturally occurring isotopes are marked in green; light green = naturally occurring radionuclides.

Z	Isotone N = 4	Isobar A = 13
1	⁵H
2	⁶He
3	⁷Li	¹³Li
4	⁸Be	¹³Be
5	⁹B	¹³B
6	¹⁰C	¹³C
7	¹¹N	¹³N
8	¹²O	¹³O
9	¹³F	¹³F

Literature and References

[1] - R. J. Charity, T. B. Webb, J. M. Elson, D. E. M. Hoff et al.:
Observation of the Exotic Isotope ¹³F Located Four Neutrons beyond the Proton Drip Line.
In: Physical Review Letters, (2021), DOI 10.1103/PhysRevLett.126.132501.