Production andβDecay ofrp-Process NucleiCd96,In98, andSn100

The {beta}-decay properties of the N=Z nuclei {sup 96}Cd, {sup 98}In, and {sup 100}Sn have been studied. These nuclei were produced at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory by fragmenting a 120 MeV/nucleon {sup 112}Sn primary beam on a Be target. The resulting radioactive beam was filtered in the A1900 and the newly commissioned Radio Frequency Fragment Separator to achieve a purity level suitable for decay studies. The observed production cross sections of these nuclei are lower than predicted by factors of 10-30. The half-life of {sup 96}Cd, which was the last experimentally unknown waiting point half-life of the astrophysical rp process, is 1.03{sub -0.21}{sup +0.24} s. The implications of the experimental T{sub 1/2} value of {sup 96}Cd on the abundances predicted by rp process calculations and the origin of A=96 isobars such as {sup 96}Ru are explored.