  The possibility to control the $\alpha$ decay channel of atomic nuclei with
electromagnetic fields of extreme intensities envisaged for the near future at
multi-petawatt and exawatt laser facilities is investigated theoretically.
Using both analytic arguments based on the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin
approximation and numerical calculations for the imaginary time method applied
in the framework of the $\alpha$ decay precluster model, we show that no
experimentally detectable modification of the $\alpha$ decay rate can be
observed with super-intense lasers at any so-far available wavelength.
Comparing our predictions with those reported in several recent publications,
where a considerable or even giant laser-induced enhancement of the decay rate
has been claimed, we identify there the misuse of a standard approximation.
