96Pd

96Pd, or palladium-96, is a radioactive, synthetic isotope of palladium (Z = 46) with a mass number of 96. It has 46 protons and 50 neutrons, placing it proton-deficient relative to the most common palladium isotopes and well away from natural palladium in Earth's crust. No stable or naturally occurring form of 96Pd is observed; it is produced in nuclear laboratories.

Production and discovery of 96Pd occur in high-energy nuclear reactions. It is typically created in fusion-evaporation reactions using heavy-ion beams, spallation of heavier targets, or projectile fragmentation. Such techniques are used to access nuclei near the proton-rich side of the chart of nuclides and to study nuclear structure in mid-mass regions.

Decay and half-life characteristics of 96Pd are short, reflecting its position far from stability. The isotope is expected to decay primarily by beta-plus emission (positron emission) or electron capture to 96Rh, with a half-life measured in the millisecond to second range in various experiments. Exact half-life values and decay branches are subjects of experimental measurement and are catalogued in nuclear data compilations.

Nuclear structure notes for 96Pd emphasize its role in exploring neutron shell effects, particularly at the N = 50 magic number. Studies of 96Pd contribute to understanding shape coexistence, nucleon interactions, and the limits of nuclear stability in the palladium region. Further data are available from specialized databases on nuclide properties and decay schemes.

See also: palladium isotopes, isotopes near N = 50, chart of nuclides.