Nuclear

and
Particle Physics
 Rutherford's Atomic Model

Rutherford concluded that all of the positive charge and virtually all of the
mass of an atom are concentrated in one tiny area, called the nucleus, and
the rest of the atom is mostly empty space.
 Nuclear Composition

The electronic structure of the atom was understood before even the
composition of its nucleus was known.

The reason is that the forces that hold the nucleus together are vastly stronger
than the electric forces that hold the electrons to the nucleus.
Nuclear electrons ?

Radioactivity decay

Nuclear spin

Magnetic moment

Evolution of Neutrons
Nuclear Size
For nuclei, with a diameter of about 10 fm,
we require
NMR/MRI
 Difference
The energy equivalent of missing mass is
 The binding energy per nucleon for

Binding energy of the elements

 Nuclear Models

LIQUID DROP MODEL

SHELL MODEL
LIQUID DROP MODEL
The nucleus is considered as a droplet of dense liquid composed of sub
droplets of nucleons.
The force of surface tension acts on the surface of the liquid drop,
similarly there is a potential barrier at the surface of the nucleus.

The nuclear force is short range

force, similarly as that of liquid drop
in which intermolecular forces are
short range forces.
 SHELL MODEL
of
NUCLEUS
(Is an attempt to account for the existence of magic numbers and certain other nuclear
properties)
The electrons in an atom may be thought of occupying positions in shells
designated by principal quantum number.
The degree of occupancy of outermost shell is what determines the certain aspects of
an atom’s behavior.

Electrons with 2, 10, 18, 36, 54, 86-Exceptionally stable accounts for chemical inertness
of rare gases
 NUCLEUS
60% of stable nuclides have both Even Z and Even N
All others have either Even Z and Odd N or Odd Z and Even N

Only few stable odd-odd nuclides are known:

2H 6Li , 10Be , 14N , 180Ta
1, 3 5 7 73

Nuclei that have 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82 and 126 neutrons or protons are more abundant
suggesting their structures are more stable.

Magic Numbers
2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82 and 126
Nuclear electric quadrupole moments
(measures of how much nuclear charge distributions departs from Sphericity)

Nuclei with magic N and Z

(2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82 and 126)
Rugby ball Pumpkin
Nuclear shell model can also predict nuclear angular momenta

Even-Even nucleons- All the protons and neutrons should be paired off to cancel out
one another’s spin and orbital angular momenta-Zero Nuclear angular momenta

Even-Odd or Odd-Even nucleons- Half integral total angular momenta

Odd-Odd nucleons- integral total angular momenta

Experimentally confirmed