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Beta decay of an even–even nucleus produces an odd–odd nucleus, and vice versa. An even number of protons or of neutrons are more stable (higher binding energy) because of pairing effects, so even–even nuclei are much more stable than odd–odd. One effect is that there are few stable odd–odd nuclides, but another effect is to prevent ...
Almost all of the mass of an atom is located in the nucleus, with a very small contribution from the electron cloud. Protons and neutrons are bound together to form a nucleus by the nuclear force. The diameter of the nucleus is in the range of 1.70 fm (1.70 × 10 −15 m [7]) for hydrogen (the diameter of a single proton) to about 11.7 fm for ...
Conversely, of the 251 known stable nuclides, only five have both an odd number of protons and odd number of neutrons: hydrogen-2 , lithium-6, boron-10, nitrogen-14, and tantalum-180m. Also, only four naturally occurring, radioactive odd–odd nuclides have a half-life >10 9 years: potassium-40 , vanadium-50 , lanthanum-138 , and lutetium-176 .
Thus, the planetary model of the atom was discarded in favor of one that described atomic orbital zones around the nucleus where a given electron is most likely to be found. [ 34 ] [ 35 ] This model was able to explain observations of atomic behavior that previous models could not, such as certain structural and spectral patterns of atoms ...
For example, a helium atom containing four nucleons has a mass about 0.8% less than the total mass of four hydrogen atoms (each containing one nucleon). The helium nucleus has four nucleons bound together, and the binding energy which holds them together is, in effect, the missing 0.8% of mass. [8] [9]
The transfer takes about 10 −6 seconds; in order to be detected, the nucleus must survive this long. [35] The nucleus is recorded again once its decay is registered, and the location, the energy, and the time of the decay are measured. [32] Stability of a nucleus is provided by the strong interaction.
When the nucleus has an even number of protons and neutrons, each one of them finds a partner. To excite such a system, one must at least use such an energy as to break a pair. Conversely, in the case of odd number of protons or neutrons, there exists an unpaired nucleon, which needs less energy to be excited.
This term, subtracted from the mass expression above, is positive for even-even nuclei and negative for odd-odd nuclei. This means that even-even nuclei, which do not have a strong neutron excess or neutron deficiency, have higher binding energy than their odd-odd isobar neighbors. It implies that even-even nuclei are (relatively) lighter and ...