Abstract :
The effects of n–p pairing on several issues of interest in nuclear structure studies are investigated. (1) The large differences in the level density near ground for N=Z odd–odd nuclei as compared to N=Z+2. In order to investigate this question, our treatment of n–p pairing is extended to include configurations in which one or more nucleon orbitals are blocked. (2) The splitting of the 0+ (T=1) and 1+ (T=0) states in odd–odd N=Z nuclei, as a function of the relative T=0 pairing interaction strength. (3) The effect of n–p pairing on superallowed β+-decay. A systematic cancellation is found, always giving a slight reduction relative to the no pairing value, implying an increase of ∼1% in the intrinsic β+ amplitude. This cancellation explains the fact that all superallowed Fermi β+/(electron capture) decays have log(ft) values that are virtually identical, independent of the level density at the Fermi level. Results are presented for these three issues using two systems with very different single particle level densities near the Fermi level.
