Isotopes of lanthanum

Last updated
Isotopes of lanthanum  (57La)
Main isotopes [1] Decay
abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct
137La synth 6×104 y ε 137Ba
138La0.089%1.05×1011 yε 138Ba
β 138Ce
139La99.911% stable
Standard atomic weight Ar°(La)
Stable Z/N chart of La and Ba Lanthanum stable nucleus.png
Stable Z/N chart of La and Ba

Naturally occurring lanthanum (57La) is composed of one stable (139La) and one radioactive (138La) isotope, with the stable isotope, 139La, being the most abundant (99.91% natural abundance). There are 39 radioisotopes that have been characterized, with the most stable being 138La, with a half-life of 1.02×1011 years; 137La, with a half-life of 60,000 years and 140La, with a half-life of 1.6781 days. The remaining radioactive isotopes have half-lives that are less than a day and the majority of these have half-lives that are less than 1 minute. This element also has 12 nuclear isomers, the longest-lived of which is 132mLa, with a half-life of 24.3 minutes. Lighter isotopes mostly decay to isotopes of barium and heavy ones mostly decay to isotopes of cerium. 138La can decay to both.

The isotopes of lanthanum range in atomic weight from 115.96  u (116La) to 154.96 u (155La).

List of isotopes

Nuclide
[n 1]
Z N Isotopic mass (Da)
[n 2] [n 3]
Half-life
[n 4] [n 5]
Decay
mode

[n 6]
Daughter
isotope

[n 7] [n 8]
Spin and
parity
[n 9] [n 5]
Natural abundance (mole fraction)Note
Excitation energy [n 5] Normal proportionRange of variation
116La [4] 575950(22) ms p (~60%)115Ba
β+ (~40%)116Ba
117La5760116.95007(43)#23.5(26) msβ+117Ba(3/2+, 3/2−)
p116Ba
117mLa151(12) keV10(5) ms(9/2+)
118La5761117.94673(32)#200# msβ+118Ba
119La5762118.94099(43)#1# sβ+119Ba11/2−#
120La5763119.93807(54)#2.8(2) sβ+120Ba
β+, p119Cs
121La5764120.93301(54)#5.3(2) sβ+121Ba11/2−#
β+, p120Cs
122La5765121.93071(32)#8.6(5) sβ+122Ba
β+, p121Cs
123La5766122.92624(21)#17(3) sβ+123Ba11/2−#
124La5767123.92457(6)29.21(17) sβ+124Ba(7−, 8−)
124mLa100(100)# keV21(4) slow(+#)
125La5768124.920816(28)64.8(12) sβ+125Ba(11/2−)
125mLa107.0(10) keV390(40) ms(3/2+)
126La5769125.91951(10)54(2) sβ+126Ba(5)(+#)
126mLa210(410) keV20(20) s(0−, 1−, 2−)
127La5770126.916375(28)5.1(1) minβ+127Ba(11/2−)
127mLa14.8(12) keV3.7(4) minβ+127Ba(3/2+)
IT 127La
128La5771127.91559(6)5.18(14) minβ+128Ba(5+)
128mLa100(100)# keV<1.4 minIT128La(1+, 2−)
129La5772128.912693(22)11.6(2) minβ+129Ba3/2+
129mLa172.1(4) keV560(50) msIT129La11/2−
130La5773129.912369(28)8.7(1) minβ+130Ba3(+)
131La5774130.91007(3)59(2) minβ+131Ba3/2+
131mLa304.52(24) keV170(10) μs11/2−
132La5775131.91010(4)4.8(2) hβ+132Ba2−
132mLa188.18(11) keV24.3(5) minIT (76%)132La6−
β+ (24%)132Ba
133La5776132.90822(3)3.912(8) hβ+133Ba5/2+
134La5777133.908514(21)6.45(16) minβ+134Ba1+
135La5778134.906977(11)19.5(2) hβ+135Ba5/2+
136La5779135.90764(6)9.87(3) minβ+136Ba1+
136mLa255(9) keV114(3) msIT136La(8)(−#)
137La5780136.906494(14)6(2)×104 y EC 137Ba7/2+ extinct
138La [n 10] 5781137.907112(4)1.02(1)×1011 yβ+ (66.4%)138Ba5+9.0(1)×10−4
β (33.6%)138Ce
138mLa72.57(3) keV116(5) ns(3)+
139La [n 11] 5782138.9063533(26)Stable7/2+0.99910(1)
140La [n 11] 5783139.9094776(26)1.6781(3) dβ140Ce3−
141La5784140.910962(5)3.92(3) hβ141Ce(7/2+)
142La5785141.914079(6)91.1(5) minβ142Ce2−
143La5786142.916063(17)14.2(1) minβ143Ce(7/2)+
144La5787143.91960(5)40.8(4) sβ144Ce(3−)
145La5788144.92165(10)24.8(20) sβ145Ce(5/2+)
146La5789145.92579(8)6.27(10) sβ (99.99%)146Ce2−
β, n (.007%)145Ce
146mLa130(130) keV10.0(1) sβ146Ce(6−)
147La5790146.92824(5)4.015(8) sβ (99.96%)147Ce(5/2+)
β, n (.04%)146Ce
148La5791147.93223(6)1.26(8) sβ (99.85%)148Ce(2−)
β, n (.15%)147Ce
149La5792148.93473(34)#1.05(3) sβ (98.6%)149Ce5/2+#
β, n (1.4%)148Ce
150La5793149.93877(43)#510(30) msβ (97.3%)150Ce(3+)
β, n (2.7%)149Ce
151La5794150.94172(43)#300# ms [>300 ns]β151Ce5/2+#
152La5795151.94625(43)#200# ms [>300 ns]β152Ce
153La5796152.94962(64)#150# ms [>300 ns]β153Ce5/2+#
154La5797153.95450(64)#100# msβ154Ce
155La5798154.95835(86)#60# msβ155Ce5/2+#
This table header & footer:
  1. mLa  Excited nuclear isomer.
  2. ()  Uncertainty (1σ) is given in concise form in parentheses after the corresponding last digits.
  3. #  Atomic mass marked #: value and uncertainty derived not from purely experimental data, but at least partly from trends from the Mass Surface (TMS).
  4. Bold half-life  nearly stable, half-life longer than age of universe.
  5. 1 2 3 #  Values marked # are not purely derived from experimental data, but at least partly from trends of neighboring nuclides (TNN).
  6. Modes of decay:
    EC: Electron capture
    IT: Isomeric transition
    n: Neutron emission
    p: Proton emission
  7. Bold italics symbol as daughter  Daughter product is nearly stable.
  8. Bold symbol as daughter  Daughter product is stable.
  9. () spin value  Indicates spin with weak assignment arguments.
  10. Primordial radionuclide
  11. 1 2 Fission product

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