Reading the Table of Nuclides

[splitringtail]

My table of nuclides has a column for Spin/Parity for the nuclides when applicable. It says it is the nuclei's total spin... yet I was under the assumption that a nucleus would have different spins depending if the proton and neutrons have various combination of up and down spins.

 

[hamster143]

The table gives you the spin of the lowest-energy state. All other combinations would be excited and unstable.

 

[splitringtail]

Oh yeah, your are right, I didn't think of it like that. I see what you mean, thank you.