Application of fundamental parameter method for investigation of the branching intensity of 1001-keV gamma energy of 234mPa

The intensity of the 1001-keV gamma line of 234mPa can be used to estimate the quantity of 238U in a matrix. However, the branching intensity value currently accepted for this line seems to be in error. In the present work, the branching intensity of the 1001-keV gamma line of 234mPa has been re-evaluated using high-resolution gamma spectrometry. We obtained a value of 0.92±0.02 % which is close to 1.6 times the value of Bjornholm and Nielsen (Bjornholm, S., Nielson, O.B., 1963. The decay of the 1.14 min isomer of 234Pa (UX2). Nucl. Phys. 42, 642).