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Chemistry Books
(https://www.ivyroses.com/Books/Chemistry/Chemistry_Books.php)

Introduction to Chemistry
What is Chemistry? (/Chemistry/What-is-Chemistry.php)
The Periodic Table (/Chemistry/Periodic-Table.php)
Chemical Elements & Chemical Symbols (/Chemistry/Chemical-Elements_List.php)
What is Physical Chemistry? (/Chemistry/What-is-Physical-Chemistry.php)
What is Organic Chemistry? (/Chemistry/What-is-Organic-Chemistry.php)
What is Inorganic Chemistry? (/Chemistry/What-is-Inorganic-Chemistry.php)

Atoms & Molecules

What is a proton ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-a-proton.php)
What is a neutron ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-a-neutron.php)
What is an electron ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-an-electron.php)
What is an Atomic Number ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/Atomic-Number_of_an_atom.php)
What is a Mass Number (of an atom)? (/Chemistry/GCSE/Mass-Number_of_an_atom.php)
What is Relative Atomic Mass? (/Chemistry/GCSE/Relative-Atomic-Mass.php)
What is an atom ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-an-atom.php)
What is an isotope ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-an-isotope.php)
What is a molecule ? (/Chemistry/GCSE/What-is-a-molecule.php)

What is a Nucleon ?
"What is a nucleon ?" is a question that can be answered at various levels of detail and complexity,
depending on the context.
This page describes nucleons at the the level required for high school chemistry (GCSE to A-Level in
the UK).

Definitions of a Nucleon:

1. A nucleon (What-is-a-nucleon.php) is the collective name for two important subatomic

particles: neutrons (What-is-a-neutron.php) and protons (What-is-a-proton.php).
2. A nucleon is one of either of the two types of subatomic particles (neutrons and protons)
which are located in the nucleus of atoms.

Key Facts about Nucleons

Nucleons are subatomic particles located in the nucleus of atoms (What-is-an-atom.php).
 Nucleons
IvyRose Holistic have a relative mass of 1.
The total number of nucleons in the nucleus of an atom is called the Mass Number (Elements-
Mixtures-Compounds_Atoms-Molecules.php) of that atom.
Another name for the Mass Number is the Nucleon Number.
The charge of a nucleon depends on which type of nucleon it is: Protons (What-is-a-proton.php)
have a charge of +1. Neutrons (What-is-a-neutron.php) have a charge of 0 (zero ; no charge ;
"charge neutral").

Questions about Nucleons

What does the number of nucleons in an atom say / determine about
that atom ?
The number of protons in an atom determines which element (What-is-
an-element.php) that particular atom is an atom of, and hence its
properties - especially its chemical properties. The physical properties of
the atom are also influenced by the number of neutrons in the atom, i.e.
the particular isotope (What-is-an-isotope.php) that atom is an example
of.)
What holds nucleons (and so the nuclei of atoms) together ?
The force, which may also be called an "attraction" or "interaction"
between two or more nucleons is called the internucleon interaction,
internucleon interactions or nuclear force. It is an extremely powerful
interaction which scientists explain by saying that it is due to "the strong
interaction", a term used in particle physics to refer to one of the four
fundamental interactions of nature. This is a very interesting topic beyond
the scope of most school chemistry courses.
What are nucleons made of ?
What are their constituent parts ?
Until about fifty years ago (1960s) nucleons were thought to be
elementary particles.
However, they are now known to be composite particles which means
that they are the result of even smaller particles attached together. Each
nucleon is composed of three quarks bound together by the "strong
interaction".
How are nucleons classified (in terms of particle physics) ?
This more advanced information is not usually required at school-level
chemistry.
The proton and neutron are both baryons and both fermions (not
bosons).
According to particle physics, protons and neutrons form an isospin doublet (I = 1⁄2), which
explains why their masses are so similar: Neutrons are approx. 0.1% heavier than protons.
What is the antiparticle of a nucleon ?
There is no such particle as a generic 'antinucleon'.
However, both types of nucleons (neutrons and protons) have corresponding antiparticles. They
are called the antineutron and the antiproton respectively. The antineutron and antiproton have
 the same
IvyRose mass and the opposite charge as the neutron and proton respectively, so an antineutron
Holistic

has a charge of 0 (zero) and an antiproton has a charge of -1.

Why do I need to know about Nucleons ?

Although it is useful to understand the word 'nucleon', 'nucleons' is not usually a topic in school
chemistry.

Instead, consider why it is useful to know about and understand protons and neutrons. They are
also important in the study of particle physics, nuclear physics (and chemistry), radiation and
radioactivity.

See also the pages about What is an atom ? (What-is-an-atom.php), What is a Proton (What-is-a-
proton.php) and What is a neutron ? (What-is-a-neutron.php)
Note: This is one of a series of simple pages introducing key concepts in introductory chemistry. Other pages in this section include elements, mixtures
and compounds (Elements-Mixtures-Compounds.php) and individual pages about substances (What-is-a-substance.php), elements (What-is-an-
element.php), mixtures (What-is-a-mixture.php) and compounds (What-is-a-compound.php), plus pages about atoms (What-is-an-atom.php), molecules
(What-is-a-molecule.php) and isotopes (What-is-an-isotope.php). If you need further information ask your chemistry tutor.

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