Isotopes of ytterbium

Naturally occurring ytterbium (Yb) is composed of 7 stable isotopes, 168Yb, 170Yb, 171Yb, 172Yb, 173Yb, 174Yb, and 176Yb, with 174Yb being the most abundant (31.83% natural abundance). 27 radioisotopes have been characterized, with the most stable being 169Yb with a half-life of 32.026 days, 175Yb with a half-life of 4.185 days, and 166Yb with a half-life of 56.7 hours. All of the remaining radioactive isotopes have half-lives that are less than 2 hours, and the majority of these have half-lives that are less than 20 minutes. This element also has 12 meta states, with the most stable being 169mYb (t½ 46 seconds).

The isotopes of ytterbium range in atomic weight from 147.9674 u (148Yb) to 180.9562 u (181Yb). The primary decay mode before the most abundant stable isotope, 174Yb is electron capture, and the primary mode after is beta emission. The primary decay products before 174Yb are isotopes of thulium, and the primary products after are isotopes of lutetium. Of interest to modern quantum optics, the different ytterbium isotopes follow either Bose-Einstein statistics or Fermi-Dirac statistics, leading to interesting behavior in optical lattices.

Standard atomic mass: 173.04(3) u

Table

nuclide
symbol
Z(p) N(n)  
isotopic mass (u)
 
half-life decay
mode(s)[1][n 1]
daughter
isotope(s)[n 2]
nuclear
spin
representative
isotopic
composition
(mole fraction)
range of natural
variation
(mole fraction)
excitation energy
148Yb 70 78 147.96742(64)# 250# ms β+ 148Tm 0+
149Yb 70 79 148.96404(54)# 0.7(2) s β+ 149Tm (1/2+,3/2+)
150Yb 70 80 149.95842(43)# 700# ms [>200 ns] β+ 150Tm 0+
151Yb 70 81 150.95540(32) 1.6(5) s β+ 151Tm (1/2+)
β+, p (rare) 150Er
151m1Yb 750(100)# keV 1.6(5) s β+ 151Tm (11/2-)
β+, p (rare) 150Er
151m2Yb 1790(500)# keV 2.6(7) µs 19/2-#
151m3Yb 2450(500)# keV 20(1) µs 27/2-#
152Yb 70 82 151.95029(22) 3.04(6) s β+ 152Tm 0+
β+, p (rare) 151Er
153Yb 70 83 152.94948(21)# 4.2(2) s α (50%) 149Er 7/2-#
β+ (50%) 153Tm
β+, p (.008%) 152Er
153mYb 2700(100) keV 15(1) µs (27/2-)
154Yb 70 84 153.946394(19) 0.409(2) s α (92.8%) 150Er 0+
β+ (7.119%) 154Tm
155Yb 70 85 154.945782(18) 1.793(19) s α (89%) 151Er (7/2-)
β+ (11%) 155Tm
156Yb 70 86 155.942818(12) 26.1(7) s β+ (90%) 156Tm 0+
α (10%) 152Er
157Yb 70 87 156.942628(11) 38.6(10) s β+ (99.5%) 157Tm 7/2-
α (.5%) 153Er
158Yb 70 88 157.939866(9) 1.49(13) min β+ (99.99%) 158Tm 0+
α (.0021%) 154Er
159Yb 70 89 158.94005(2) 1.67(9) min β+ 159Tm 5/2(-)
160Yb 70 90 159.937552(18) 4.8(2) min β+ 160Tm 0+
161Yb 70 91 160.937902(17) 4.2(2) min β+ 161Tm 3/2-
162Yb 70 92 161.935768(17) 18.87(19) min β+ 162Tm 0+
163Yb 70 93 162.936334(17) 11.05(25) min β+ 163Tm 3/2-
164Yb 70 94 163.934489(17) 75.8(17) min EC 164Tm 0+
165Yb 70 95 164.93528(3) 9.9(3) min β+ 165Tm 5/2-
166Yb 70 96 165.933882(9) 56.7(1) h EC 166Tm 0+
167Yb 70 97 166.934950(5) 17.5(2) min β+ 167Tm 5/2-
168Yb 70 98 167.933897(5) Observationally Stable[n 3] 0+ 0.0013(1)
169Yb 70 99 168.935190(5) 32.026(5) d EC 169Tm 7/2+
169mYb 24.199(3) keV 46(2) s IT 169Yb 1/2-
170Yb 70 100 169.9347618(26) Observationally Stable[n 4] 0+ 0.0304(15)
170mYb 1258.46(14) keV 370(15) ns 4-
171Yb 70 101 170.9363258(26) Observationally Stable[n 5] 1/2- 0.1428(57)
171m1Yb 95.282(2) keV 5.25(24) ms IT 171Yb 7/2+
171m2Yb 122.416(2) keV 265(20) ns 5/2-
172Yb 70 102 171.9363815(26) Observationally Stable[n 6] 0+ 0.2183(67)
173Yb 70 103 172.9382108(26) Observationally Stable[n 7] 5/2- 0.1613(27)
173mYb 398.9(5) keV 2.9(1) µs 1/2-
174Yb 70 104 173.9388621(26) Observationally Stable[n 8] 0+ 0.3183(92)
175Yb 70 105 174.9412765(26) 4.185(1) d β- 175Lu 7/2-
175mYb 514.865(4) keV 68.2(3) ms 1/2-
176Yb 70 106 175.9425717(28) Observationally Stable[n 9] 0+ 0.1276(41)
176mYb 1050.0(3) keV 11.4(3) s (8)-
177Yb 70 107 176.9452608(28) 1.911(3) h β- 177Lu (9/2+)
177mYb 331.5(3) keV 6.41(2) s IT 177Yb (1/2-)
178Yb 70 108 177.946647(11) 74(3) min β- 178Lu 0+
179Yb 70 109 178.95017(32)# 8.0(4) min β- 179Lu (1/2-)
180Yb 70 110 179.95233(43)# 2.4(5) min β- 180Lu 0+
181Yb 70 111 180.95615(43)# 1# min β- 181Lu 3/2-#
  1. ^ Abbreviations:
    EC: Electron capture
    IT: Isomeric transition
  2. ^ Bold for stable isotopes
  3. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 164Er or β+β+ decay to 168Er with a half-life over 130×1012 years
  4. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 166Er
  5. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 167Er
  6. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 168Er
  7. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 169Er
  8. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 170Er
  9. ^ Believed to undergo α decay to 172Er or β-β- decay to 176Hf with a half-life over 160×1015 years

Notes

References

  1. ^ http://www.nucleonica.net/unc.aspx
Isotopes of thulium Isotopes of ytterbium Isotopes of lutetium
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