A proposed solution for the lifetime puzzle of the 229mTh+ isomer

With the example of the 229Th nucleus, which is the most likely candidate for the creation frequency standard of a future, the dynamics of the interplay and the relationship of various resonance conversion mechanisms is analyzed. As a result, a solution is proposed for the so-called thorium puzzle, which consisted of a contradiction between the experimental and theoretical lifetimes of Th+ ions. First, the solution demonstrates the dependence of the lifetime of the nuclear isomer on the ambient conditions. Second, it demonstrates the leveling role of the fragmentation of the single-electron levels, which makes the resonance amplification of the electron-nuclear interaction more likely. Both of these trends lead to a probable decrease of the theoretical lifetime towards agreement with experiment.