Exotic Three-Body Decay in Open Quantum Systems

Simin Wang (Sudan University, China)

Exotic decay beyond the nuclear dripline represents a frontier in understanding the nuclear landscape. Among these phenomena, two-proton (2p) radioactivity emerges as a distinctive three-body process, involving the simultaneous emission of two protons from the ground state of even-Z, neutron-deficient nuclei. Recent advancements in measuring proton-proton correlations have reignited interest in this area, highlighting the interplay between structure and reaction dynamics in nuclear open quantum systems. As a complementary process, two-neutron (2n) emission—recently observed in certain neutron-rich dripline nuclei—has similarly garnered attention. Comparing these two exotic processes offers valuable insights into the interplay between Coulomb and nuclear interactions in the presence of a low-lying continuum. Our study employs the Gamow coupled-channel method alongside a time-dependent approach, revealing how the structure of the initial wave function, shaped by both initial-state and final-state interactions, crucially influences decay dynamics and proton-proton correlations. Additionally, by analyzing the energy dependence of these correlations, we uncover unique insights into non-exponential decay mechanisms, deepening our understanding of open quantum system properties.