Alpha Decay Quantum Tunneling (Gamow Theory)

Every alpha-emitting nucleus is a quantum-mechanical escape act: an alpha particle sits in a potential well it has nowhere near enough energy to climb over, yet given enough attempts it eventually tunnels straight through the wall. This simulator builds the real Coulomb barrier from an isotope's mass number, atomic number and decay energy, numerically integrates the WKB transmission probability across the classically-forbidden zone, and turns that into a computed half-life — reproducing, from one formula, why polonium-212 decays in microseconds while uranium-238 waits billions of years. Pick a real isotope or drag the A/Z/Q sliders to build your own nucleus, and watch the 3D barrier and assault animation update live alongside the numbers.