α-decay properties of superheavy nuclei with 117 ≤ Z ≤ 120 from the systematics of decay chains and isotopic chains

Recently, the synthesis of new elements above Z = 118 has been a hot topic in nuclear physics. Meanwhile, the α-decay chain is expected to be the unique tool to identify these heaviest nuclei. We have systematically calculated the α-decay energies and half-lives on the same footing for superheavy nuclei (SHN) within the cluster model along with a slightly modified Woods-Saxon (W.S.) potential as the nuclear potential. Based on the available experimental data, the key radius parameter (R) in the α-core potential is determined via the systematic trend from the α-decay and isotopic chains. The α-decay energy (Qα) values and half-lives are then obtained simultaneously for those unknown SHN in the range of 117 ≤ Z ≤ 120, during which the decay width is obtained using a new treatment for the asymptotic behavior of the α-core wave function. The theoretical values and experimental data are found to be in excellent agreement for the nuclei ^(293,294)117 and ^(294)118 regardless of the method used to determine the R parameter. Predicting the α-decay chains for new elements Z = 119 and Z = 120 can be useful in ongoing or forthcoming experiments.