We suggest a small set of fission observables to be used as test cases for validation of theoretical calculations. The purpose is to provide common data to facilitate the comparison of different fission theories and models. The proposed observables a
re chosen from fission barriers, spontaneous fission lifetimes, fission yield characteristics, and fission isomer excitation energies.
We explore the systematics of odd-even mass staggering with a view to identifying the physical mechanisms responsible. The BCS pairing and mean field contributions have A- and number parity dependencies which can help disentangle the different contri
butions. This motivates the two-term parametrization c_1 + c_2/A as a theoretically based alternative to the inverse power form traditionally used to fit odd-even mass differences. Assuming that the A-dependence of the BCS pairing is weak, we find that mean-field contributions are dominant below mass number A~40 while BCS pairing dominates in heavier nuclei.
