Tagged Questions
8
votes
4answers
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Why are alpha particles such a prominent form of radiation and not other types of nucleon arrangement?
It is said in many textbooks that alpha decay involves emitting alpha particles, which are very stable. Indeed, the binding energy (~28.3 MeV) is higher than for $Z$-neighboring stable isotopes. But ...
2
votes
1answer
155 views
Can stable nuclei theoretically fission through quantum tunneling?
As I understand it, an unstable nucleus is going to randomly fission because the forces binding it together are momentarily weaker than the electrostatic repulsion of the protons.
Given that some ...
