Cryptic crossword clue
Semi-existence leads to period of decay 4-4

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 4 letter word HALF LIFE

I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
H
A
L
F
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F
E

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "period of decay" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case period of decay = half life.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

What does HALF LIFE mean?

HALF LIFE noun
  1. The time required for half of the nuclei in a sample of a specific isotope to undergo radioactive decay.
  2. In a chemical reaction, the time required for the concentration of a reactant to fall from a chosen value to half that value.
  3. The time it takes for a substance (drug, radioactive nuclide, or other) to lose half of its pharmacological, physiologic, or radiological activity.
  4. The time it takes for an idea or a fashion to lose half of its influential power.

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