Follow-up Training Course on Reactor Engineering, TI, AERE, BAEC

Session 01: Basic Nuclear Physics

February 07, 2021

Mohammad Amirul Islam

Ph.D. and Post-doc. Fellow, Japan
Chief Scientific Officer
Reactor and Neutron Physics Division
INST, AERE, BAEC
&
Guest Professor
Department of Nuclear Science & Engineering, MIST
Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of Dhaka
 Basic Nuclear Physics
Outline:
1. Nuclear Physics
2. Nuclear structure
3. Composition of nuclei
4. Isotopes, Isotones, Isobars, Isomers
5. Nuclear stability
6. Nuclear binding energy
7. Radioactivity, radioactive decay and half life
8. Modes of decay: Alpha, Beta and Gamma decay
9. Nuclear Reactions
 1. Nuclear Physics
➢ Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies
atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions.

➢ Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic

physics, which studies the atom as a whole, including
its electrons.
 2. Nuclear structure

Mass of nuclei or atomic particle:

atomic mass unit (amu), 1 amu = 1.66x10-27 kg;
Reference 12C
 2. Nuclear structure
The average radius of a nucleus with A nucleons is
R = R0A1/3 , where R0 = 1.2x10-15 m and the
mass of a nucleon, m ~ 1.6*10-27 kg.

Radius of a typical atom, nucleus and other subatomic particles

 2. Nuclear structure
What is the density of nuclear matter?

Solution:
The density ρ is the mass divided by the volume.
The mass of a nucleus is A times the mass of a
nucleon, m ~ 1.6*10-27 kg.
The volume is (4/3)πR3, with R = R0A1/3.
Therefore ρ = m/((4/3)πR03) ~ 2*1017 kg/m3.

Compare this with the density of ordinary matter.

The density of water, for example is 103 kg/m3.
 3. Composition of nuclei
Quarks are building blocks of protons and neutrons. There
are six different types of quarks having different masses and
charges. Each quark type is called a flavor.
3. Composition of nuclei

Proton is
composed of
two up quark
and one down
quark (uud):
2.2/3e - 1/3e= 1e
Neutron is
composed of one
up quark and two
down quark (udd).
2/3e-1/3e-1/3e = 0
4. Isotopes, isobars, isotones and isomers
Isotopes
Nuclides having the same atomic number but
different mass numbers are known as isotopes.

For example, iodine has 37 known isotopes with

mass numbers ranging from 108 to 144.

131I is an isotope of
127I, and 127I is also

an isotope of 131I.
4. Isotopes, isobars, isotones and isomers
Isobars
Nuclides having the same mass number but different
atomic numbers are known as isobars.

131Iand 131Xe
are isobars
of each other.
A pair of
isobars
cannot
belong to the
same
chemical
element.
4. Isotopes, isobars, isotones and isomers
Isotones
Nuclides having the same number of neutron but
different mass numbers are sometimes referred to as
isotones.

For example,

30 31 32
14 Si ,
15 P and
16 S
are isotones because they all contain 16 neutrons per
nucleus.
4. Isotopes, isobars, isotones and isomers
Isomers
Two nuclei that have the same composition but in
different energy state are known as isomers.
99Tccan exist in two energy states; the higher of the
two is a temporary state generally referred to as a
metastable state.

140 keV
 5. Nuclear stability
Electrostatic repulsion causes the force produced by
particles with the same charge (ie. proton-proton).
What holds the nucleons in the nucleus together? or

How is it that the protons are able to remain in the

nucleus?

Ans: Strong nuclear force (Treats on n & p equally)

Overcomes the electrostatic repulsion between

protons and acts on both protons and neutrons.

Acts only on subatomic particles that are extremely

close together and negligible for large distances.
 5. Nuclear stability

The tug-of-war between the strong nuclear force and

the repulsive electrostatic force between protons has
interesting implications for the stability of a nucleus.

The most significant factor that determines the

balance between the internal forces and therefore the
nuclear stability is the ratio of the number of neutrons
to the number of protons.

Why is it that certain combinations i) n/p ratio and

of nucleons are stable in a nucleus
while others are not? ii) magic number
 5. Nuclear stability
❖ If the n/p ratio is too
high or too low, it
makes for an unstable
nucleus.
❖ For light elements n/p
Β-decay and ratio ~1 produces
n emission
maximum stability.
❖ The ratio for stability
gradually increases
with increasing atomic
Positron emission and
electron capture number up to a value
of ~1.3 to 1.0 for the
highest atomic
209Bi numbers.
is the largest stable
83
nucleus
 5. Nuclear stability
➢ The actual number of protons and neutrons affects the
stability of a nucleus.
➢ Nuclei with even number of protons and / or neutrons
are more likely to be stable than those with odd
numbers of protons and / or neutrons.
➢ Magic Number: Number of protons and neutrons that
are particularly stable (less likely to be radioactive).
- Magic numbers N or Z =
- 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126.
Number of stable nuclides with Even and Odd number of nucleons
Z N No. of nuclides Examples
Even Even 157

Even Odd 53

Odd Even 50

Odd Odd 5
6. Nuclear Binding Energy
❑ Nuclear binding energy (B.E.) is the amount of
energy that would be required to break the
nucleus into its individual nucleons.

❑ The greater the B.E., the more stable the

nuclide will be.

❑ The mass of a nucleus is always less than the

sum of the individual masses of the protons and
neutrons which constitute it.

❑ The difference is a measure of the nuclear binding

energy which holds the nucleons together.
 6. Nuclear Binding Energy
B.E. can be calculated from the Einstein relationship:
Nuclear binding energy = Δmc2
For the alpha particle Δm= 0.0304 u which gives a
binding energy of 28.3 MeV.
 6. Nuclear Binding Energy
Curve shows
that EB increases
with A and peaks
at A = 60.
-Heavier nuclei
are less stable.
-Brown region is
Fusion Fission
for most stable
atoms.

For heavier nuclei, energy is released when they

break up (fission). For lighter nuclei, energy is
released when they fuse together (fusion).
7. Radioactivity, radioactive decay and half-life

What is radioactivity?

The terms "radiation" and "radioactivity" are often

confused. The proper relationship between the
terms is that "radioactive atoms emit radiation".

Radioactivity is the process by which unstable

atomic nuclei decay to a more stable state.

This process normally produces ionizing

radiation with a relatively large amount of energy.
 Radioactive decay
Radioactive decay is governed by statistics, so it is
very easy to predict the decay pattern of a large
number of radioactive nuclei.
The rate at which nuclei decay is proportional to
the number of nuclei:

dN N = No. of radioactive nuclei

= −N
dt
decay  = decay constant

Integrate this equation to get

− t
N (t ) = N 0e Exponential decay law

This equation tells how many radioactive nuclei

there are at a particular time t.
 Half-life
❑ Time required for half of radioactive sample to
decay;
❑ It is a measure of the stability of an isotope;
❑ The shorter the half life, the less stable the atom.

ln 2 0.693
It is closely related to t1 = =
the decay constant  2  

The decay constant  1

is closely related to =
the mean life time  
 Half-life
The rate at which a radioactive isotope decays
is called the activity of the isotope.

Activity = N (t ) = decay rate

The activity of a sample of radioactive material

is measured in disintegrations per second.

SI unit is Becquerel (Bq); 1 Bq = 2.703x10-11 Ci

Historical unit is Curie (Ci); 1 Ci = 3.7x1010 dps

 8. Modes of decay

1899 Ernest Rutherford determined that

modes of decay are principally
➢ alpha
➢ beta
➢ gamma emission
with spontaneous fission as one of the
small number of rarer processes.
 8. Modes of decay
Alpha decay
❑ An alpha particle is a He-4 nucleus;
❑ Preferred mode of decay at high atomic number, Z>83.

In losing an alpha particle the Z →Z −2

nucleus loses four units of
mass and two units of charge, A→ A−4

238 234
Th +
4

92U 90 2 He

92 protons 90 protons 2 protons

146 neutrons 144 neutrons 2 neutrons
They travel short distances, have large mass
 8. Modes of decay
Beta decay
Beta decay is a process where unstable nuclei become more
stable.

A beta particle is often an electron but can also be a

positron.

In the case of electron emission, it is referred to as

beta minus (β−), while in the case of a positron
emission as beta plus (β+).
Beta decay 8. Modes of decay

n → p + + e − + e

p + → n + e+ +

Both alpha and beta decays change the original

nucleus into a nucleus of a different chemical element.
 8. Modes of decay
+ or positron decay (Annihilation)

Positrons are anti particles to electrons, and the slowed

positron will inevitably find itself near an electron. The
couple may exist for a short time as positronium. Then the
process of annihilation occurs.

Both positron and electron disappear and two photons are

produced, each with energy equal to 0.511 MeV, the electron
rest mass.

These photons are called annihilation radiation and are a

common component of gamma spectra.
 8. Modes of decay
+ or positron decay

atomic electron
photon
e+ + e- 511 keV

positron
511 keV
Before annihilation After annihilation

To conserve momentum the two 511 keV photons will be

emitted at 180o to each other
 8. Modes of decay
Electron Capture
When a radionuclide is proton rich, but has energy
less than 1.022 MeV, then it decays by electron
capture. In the process, an electron from K-shell, is
captured by a proton in the nucleus to produce a
neutron, and a neutrino is emitted to conserve energy

p + e− → n + 
M
L
K 111
49 In + e → Cd +
− 111
48
Nucleus Z

Electron capture
 8. Modes of decay
Gamma emission
Gamma ray is electromagnetic radiation, basically just
like radio waves, visible light, and X-rays, except that
they have a much higher frequency (or shorter
wavelength) having no charge or mass.
It is emitted
usually by
de-excitation
of a nuclear
level
In gamma emission there is no change in the number
or type of nucleons in the nucleus; there is no
change in Z, N, or A. The process is only that of
losing surplus excitation energy.
 8. Modes of decay
The gamma ray is emitted usually as a by-product of
alpha or beta decay.
In case of 60Co many gamma transitions are involved
60Co (5.272 year)

β1(99.88%)
The great majority of beta
decays go to the 2505.7 keV β2 2505.7 keV
level which fall to the ground (0.12%) 1
state in two steps and two 1332.5 keV
gamma rays appear:
2
1 = 2505.7-1332.5 = 1173.2 keV 60Ni
0
2 = 1332.5-0 = 1332.5 keV
The decay scheme of 60Co
These two gamma rays are
said to be cascade 60Co = 60Ni+β-+anti-neutrino
 8. Modes of decay
Gamma emission
Pure Gamma emission occurs when an isotope exists
in two different forms, called nuclear isomers, having
identical atomic numbers and mass numbers, but
different in nuclear-energy content.

 = 140 keV
 9. Nuclear Reactions

❖ An interaction of a nucleus with another nucleus,

neutron, proton or an elementary particle producing new
nuclei through the alteration of the energy or structure or
composition of atomic nuclei is called a nuclear reaction.
 9. Nuclear Reactions

The general form of nuclear reaction is

a + X → Y + b Or X(a,b)Y
projectile target product ejectile

The projectile may be a particle The ejectile may be a

(p, n, ), a photon (thermonuclear particle, a photon, or
reaction) or even another nucleus again a nucleus
(heavy ion reaction).

The reaction
4
2 He+147N →178 O + p
14
Can be written in the compact form as 7 N ( 24 He, p)178 O
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Q-value
For example, when deuteron (2H1) interacts with
tritium (3H1) the fusion reaction is occurred by
producing alpha particle (4He2) and neutron (1n0)

2H
1 + 3H
1
4H
e + n + 17.6 MeV
Q-value

The Q-value of this nuclear reaction can be

calculated from the difference between the initial
(reactants) and final (products) masses of the
reaction using Einstein equation E=mc2.
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Q-value
A reaction with a positive Q-value is said to be exoergic
or exothermic. This means that the system loses rest
mass during the reaction and gains a corresponding
amount of kinetic energy.

If Q is negative, the reaction is called endoergic or

endothermic; such reaction will not go unless a certain
minimal kinetic energy is provided by the incoming
particle.
 9. Nuclear Reactions

Conservation conditions of a Nuclear Reaction

1. Mass/energy is conserved
2. Charge is conserved
3. Spin is conserved
4. Linear momentum is conserved
5. Angular momentum is conserved
6. Baryon number is conserved
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Classifications of nuclear reactions
➢Transmutation
➢Elastic scattering
➢Inelastic scattering
➢Radiative capture
➢Particle emission
➢Stripping reaction
➢Pickup reaction
➢Heavy ion reactions
➢Fission reaction
➢Fusion reaction
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Fission reaction
Fission is a nuclear process in which a heavy nucleus
splits into two smaller nuclei.
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Fission reaction

The products shown in the above equation are only one

set of many possible product nuclei
 9. Nuclear Reactions
Application of Fission reaction

TRIG

BAEC 3 MW TRIGA Mark-II

 9. Nuclear Reactions
Classification of neutrons
When neutrons collide with the moderator, the most
energetic neutrons rapidly lose energy. This slowing
down creates a broad distribution of neutron energies
with three main categories

Thermal : < 0.5 eV (Average energy 0.025 eV

and velocity 2200 m/s)

Epithermal : 0.5 eV – 1 MeV

Fast : >1 MeV

 9. Nuclear Reactions
Nuclear Fusion Reaction
Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two or more light
nuclei combine to form a heavy nucleus with the
liberation of large amount of energy.
Why does fusion
release more
energy than
fission?
Because the mass
lost during fusion
is more than that
lost during fission.

Fusion Reaction between Isotopes of Hydrogen

 9. Nuclear Reactions
14 MeV J-25 Neutron Generator

Energy released
p p n p n n 17.6 MeV
+
n + n n p
Deuterium Tritium Helium-4 neutron
2H
1 + 3H
1
4H
e + n + 17.6 MeV
Thank you very much