Germanium-64

The new isotope ${}_{}{}^{64}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Ge}$ has been produced via the reaction ${}_{}{}^{64}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Zn}({}_{}{}^3{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{He},3n){}_{}{}^{64}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Ge}$, chemically isolated, and its decay studied. Since ${}_{}{}^{64}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Ge}$ is therefore nucleon stable, it can in principle have an important role in the synthesis of mass 64 by $\alpha$ capture during explosive stellar events, as proposed by Arnett, Truran, and Woosley. However, from the measured half-life (62.3 ± 2.0 sec) and $\beta$-decay systematics, it appears that this mechanism is probably responsible for a negligible fraction of the observed abundance of mass 64.