Abrupt changes in α-decay systematics as a manifestation of collective nuclear modes

An abrupt change in alpha-decay systematics around the N = 126 neutron shell closure is discussed. It is explained as a sudden hindrance of the clustering of the nucleons that eventually form the a particle. This is because the clustering induced by the pairing mode acting upon the four nucleons is inhibited if the configuration space does not allow a proper manifestation of the pairing collectivity.