Theoretical study of two-proton radioactivity. Status, predictions, and applications

In this paper the survey of the current state of investigation of two-proton radioactivity and related processes (three-body decays) is presented. The three-body (core + p + p ) theoretical model of two-proton radioactivity based on the hyperspherical harmonics method and approximate boundary conditions of the Coulomb's three-body problem specific for the studied class of processes is considered. The predictions for lifetimes and correlations of decay products for "promising" two-proton emitters are given. Astrophysical applications of the theory of two-proton radioactivity are discussed.