Natural zinc (30Zn) is composed of the 5 stable isotopes 64Zn, 66Zn, 67Zn, 68Zn, and 70Zn; and 64Zn is the most abundant (48.6% natural abundance). Twenty-eight radioisotopes have been characterized; the most stable is 65Zn with a half-life of 243.94 days, and then 72Zn (half-life 46.5 hours). All other isotopes have half-lives of less than 14 hours and most of these have half-lives of less than 1 second. This element also has 10 meta states.

Zinc has been proposed as a "salting" material for nuclear weapons. A jacket of isotopically enriched 64Zn, irradiated by the intense high-energy neutron flux from an exploding thermonuclear weapon, would be transmuted to 65Zn, which emits 1.115MeV of gamma radiation in about half of decays, and would significantly increase the radioactivity of the weapon's fallout for several years. Such a weapon is not known to have ever been built, tested, or used.

List of isotopes

NuclideZNIsotopic mass (Da)Discovery yearHalf-lifeDecay modeDaughter isotopeSpin and parityNatural abundance (molefraction)
Excitation energyNormal proportionRange of variation
54Zn302453.99388(23)#1.8(5)ms2p52Ni0+
55Zn302554.98468(43)#19.8(13)msβ+, p (91.0%)54Ni5/2−#
β+ (9.0%)55Cu
56Zn302655.97274(43)#32.4(7)msβ+, p (88.0%)55Ni0+
β+ (12.0%)56Cu
57Zn302756.96506(22)#45.7(6)msβ+, p (87%)56Ni7/2−#
β+ (13%)57Cu
58Zn302857.954590(54)86.0(19)msβ+ (99.3%)58Cu0+
β+, p (0.7%)57Ni
59Zn302958.94931189(81)178.7(13)msβ+ (99.90%)59Cu3/2−
β+, p (0.10%)58Ni
60Zn303059.94184132(59)2.38(5)minβ+60Cu0+
61Zn303160.939507(17)89.1(2)sβ+61Cu3/2−
62Zn303261.93433336(66)9.193(15)hβ+62Cu0+
63Zn303362.9332111(17)38.47(5)minβ+63Cu3/2−
64Zn303463.92914178(69)Observationally Stable0+0.4917(75)
65Zn303564.92924053(69)243.94(4)dEC (98.579(7)%)65Cu5/2−
β+ (1.421(7)%)
65mZn53.928(10)keV1.6(6)μsIT65Zn1/2−
66Zn303665.92603364(80)Stable0+0.2773(98)
67Zn303766.92712742(81)Stable5/2−0.0404(16)
67m1Zn93.312(5)keV9.15(7)μsIT67Zn1/2−
67m2Zn604.48(5)keV333(14)nsIT67Zn9/2+
68Zn303867.92484423(84)Stable0+0.1845(63)
69Zn303968.92655036(85)56.4(9)minβ−69Ga1/2−
69mZn438.636(18)keV13.747(11)hIT (99.97%)69Zn9/2+
β− (0.033%)69Ga
70Zn304069.9253192(21)Observationally Stable0+0.0061(10)
71Zn304170.9277196(28)2.40(5)minβ−71Ga1/2−
71mZn157.7(13)keV4.148(12)hβ−71Ga9/2+
IT?71Zn
72Zn304271.9268428(23)46.5(1)hβ−72Ga0+
73Zn304372.9295826(20)24.5(2)sβ−73Ga1/2−
73mZn195.5(2)keV13.0(2)msIT73Zn5/2+
74Zn304473.9294073(27)95.6(12)sβ−74Ga0+
75Zn304574.9328402(21)10.2(2)sβ−75Ga7/2+
75mZn126.94(9)keV5#sβ−?75Ga1/2−
IT?75Zn
76Zn304675.9331150(16)5.7(3)sβ−76Ga0+
77Zn304776.9368872(21)2.08(5)sβ−77Ga7/2+
77mZn772.440(15)keV1.05(10)sβ− (66%)77Ga1/2−
IT (34%)77Zn
78Zn304877.9382892(21)1.47(15)sβ−78Ga0+
β−, n?77Ga
78mZn2673.7(6)keV320(6)nsIT78Zn(8+)
79Zn304978.9426381(24)746(42)msβ− (98.3%)79Ga9/2+
β−, n (1.7%)78Ga
79mZn942(10)keV>200msβ−?79Ga1/2+
IT?79Zn
80Zn305079.9445529(28)562.2(30)msβ− (98.64%)80Ga0+
β−, n (1.36%)79Ga
81Zn305180.9504026(54)299.4(21)msβ− (77%)81Ga(1/2+, 5/2+)
β−, n (23%)80Ga
β−, 2n?79Ga
82Zn305281.9545741(33)177.9(25)msβ−, n (69%)81Ga0+
β− (31%)82Ga
β−, 2n?80Ga
83Zn305382.96104(32)#100(3)msβ−, n (71%)82Ga3/2+#
β− (29%)83Ga
β−, 2n?81Ga
84Zn305483.96583(43)#54(8)msβ−, n (73%)83Ga0+
β− (27%)84Ga
β−, 2n?82Ga
85Zn305584.97305(54)#40#ms [>400ns]β−?85Ga5/2+#
β−, n?84Ga
β−, 2n?83Ga
86Zn305685.97846(54)#β−?86Ga0+
β−, n?85Ga
87Zn3057
This table header & footer: view

See also

Daughter products other than zinc