Oxygen-23

Properties and data of the isotope ²³O.

Contents

Oxygen-23 is a radioisotope of the chemical element oxygen, which has 15 neutrons in its atomic nucleus in addition to the element-specific 8 protons; the sum of the number of these atomic nucleus building blocks results in a mass number of 23. The very short-lived, only artificially produced, unstable and thus radioactive nuclide has no practical significance; the study of ²³O is exclusively for academic purposes.

The radioactive nuclide was discovered by irradiating thorium-232 with neon-22 ions accelerated to 174 MeV [1].

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

General data

Name of the isotope:Oxygen-23; O-23Symbol:²³O or 238OMass number A:23 (= number of nucleons)Atomic number Z:8 (= number of protons)Neutrons N:15Isotopic mass:23.01570(13) u (atomic weight of Oxygen-23)Nuclide mass:23.0113114 u (calculated nuclear mass without electrons)Mass excess:14.62446 MeVMass defect:0.176873996 u (per nucleus)Nuclear binding energy:164.75706603 MeV (per nucleus)
7.1633507 MeV (average binding energy per nucleon)Separation energy:S_N = 2.733(134) MeV (first neutron)
S_P = 24.432(241) MeV (first proton)Half-life:0.097(8) sDecay constant λ:7.1458472222675 s^-1Specific activity α:1.871012979829 × 10⁺²³ Bq g^-1
5056791837377.6 Ci g^-1Spin and parity:
(nuclear angular momentum)1/2+Year of discovery:1970

Radioactive Decay

Half-life T_½ = 0.097(8) s respectively 9.7 × 10^-2 seconds s.

Decay mode	Daughter	Probability	Decay energy	γ energy (intensity)
β^-	²³F	93(2) %	11.340(130) MeV
β^-, n	²²F	7(2) %	3.757(122) MeV

Isotones and Isobars

The following table shows the atomic nuclei that are isotonic (same neutron number N = 15) and isobaric (same nucleon number A = 23) with Oxygen-23. Naturally occurring isotopes are marked in green; light green = naturally occurring radionuclides.

Z	Isotone N = 15	Isobar A = 23
5	²⁰B
6	²¹C
7	²²N	²³N
8	²³O	²³O
9	²⁴F	²³F
10	²⁵Ne	²³Ne
11	²⁶Na	²³Na
12	²⁷Mg	²³Mg
13	²⁸Al	²³Al
14	²⁹Si	²³Si
15	³⁰P
16	³¹S
17	³²Cl
18	³³Ar
19	³⁴K
20	³⁵Ca
21	³⁶Sc