Basics of nuclear

physics
Contents:
 Structure of an atom
 Rutherford’s atomic model
 Bohr’s atomic model
 Electrons and energy levels
 Nuclear elements and nuclear stability
 Radioactivity
 Decay process
 Interaction of radiation with matter
 Structure of an atom
 JJ Thomson’s plum pudding model
 Rutherford’s planetary model
 Rutherford’s experiment: scattering of
alpha particles.
Drawbacks:
 According to Larmor theory electron
loses energy while orbiting nucleus.
Hence atom will collapse in 16
picoseconds
 Bohr’s atomic model
 According to Neil Bohr’s theory electron can have
only classical motions:
◦ Electrons in atoms orbit the nucleus.
◦ The electrons can only orbit stably, without
radiating, in certain orbits at a certain discrete set
of distances from the nucleus.
◦ Electrons can only gain and lose energy by
jumping from one allowed orbit to another,
absorbing or emitting electromagnetic radiation
with a frequency ν determined by the energy
difference of the levels according to the Planck
relation:
Electrons and energy levels
 Mass of an electron: 9.1*10-28 g.
 Charge: 1.59*10-19 coulombs.
 A particle with same mass but a
positive charge is called positron.
 No. of electrons in a shell is given by:
2n2 .
 Binding energy of a single electron of
Hydrogen atom: Eb=-13.6/n2 eV
 Nuclear elements
 Fundamental constituents: neutrons
and protons.
 Mass of proton: 1.672*10-24 g.
 Neutron:
◦ No charge, mass ~ proton.
◦ Limited life in free state. Later
disintegrates into electron and proton.
 Symbol:
 Nuclear stability
 Stability depends on n/p ratio.
 Extra energy is released by the
nucleus by expelling particles or
photons.
 Radioactivity
 The process of transmutation of an
unstable element to another element
through the emission of radiation.
 Unit: curie (Ci) (3.7*1010
disintegration/sec).
 Radioactive decay law:

 Half life of an element:

 Decay Process

It consists of four processes:

Alpha decay
Beta decay
Positron decay
Gamma decay
Alpha decay
Alpha Decay Applications

241
95 Am He  ?
4
2
A
Z
 Beta decay

228
88 Ra  e Ac
0
1
228
89
 Positron Emission

230
91 Pa  e 
0
1
230
90Th
 Gamma Decay

240
94 Pu  Pu  
240
94
0
0
 Decay Process
 Isotopes: Z same, A different
e.g 1H1,1H2, 1H3
 Isobars: A same, Z different
e.g. 40S, 40Cl
 Isotones: Same number of neutrons.
e.g. Cl-37, K-39
 Isomeres: They are different excited
states of the same type of nucleus.
 Electron capture:
Isomeric and Isobaric
Transition
 A nuclear process in which a nucleus
following the emission of an alpha
particle or a beta particle emits energy
without changing its number of protons
or neutrons.
Interaction of x-rays with
matter
 Phoelectric effect:
 Kinetic energy:EC= EO +EB
 Compton Effect
 The Compton effect (Compton scattering)
is the result of a high-energy photon
colliding with a target, which releases
loosely bound electrons from the outer
shell of the atom or molecule. The
scattered radiation experiences a
wavelength shift.

 Pair Production
 Pair production is the creation of
an elementary particle and
its antiparticle, for example
an electron and the positron.
 occurs when a photon interacts with a
nucleus.
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