Topic 7 Atomic and Nuclear
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Created by:
mrsthernandez on April 21, 2010
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32 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 alpha particle | a doubly ionised helium atom, that is a helium nucleus. |
| beta particle | a negative or a positive electron associated with radioactive decay. |
| antineutrino | a particle with zero rest mass and zero charge that results from beta-minus decay and decay of a free neutron. |
| control rods | the rate of nuclear fission in the reactor core can be controlled by inserting or removing the control rods. The control rods are constructed of materials that absorb neutrons. |
| electron-volt (eV) | the energy acquired by an electron as a result of moving through a potential difference of one volt. |
| gamma rays | high frequency electromagnetic radiation, that is high energy photons. |
| heat exchanger | a system basically acting as a heat engine driven by chemical reactions (the combustion of fossil fuels) or by nuclear reactions. The working fluid is water heated in a boiler that is converted to steam at high pressure. |
| ionizing radiation | when radiation causes ions to form it is called ionizing radiation. |
| ionization | the removal of an electron or electrons from an atom. |
| isotopes | atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei. |
| natural radioactivity | a property associated with certain naturally occurring elements in which they emit ionizing radiations. |
| nuclear binding energy | the energy required to separate the nucleus into it individual nucleons or the energy that would be released in assembling a nucleus from its individual nucleons. |
| nuclear fission | the splitting of a nucleus into two other nuclei. |
| nuclear fusion | the combining of two nuclei into a single nucleus |
| nuclide | the general term for a unique nucleus. An atom or a nucleus that is characterized by the constituents of its nucleus. The number of protons and number of neutrons; |
| positron | a positively charged electron |
| radiation shielding | ensures the safety of personnel working inside and around the reactor from suffering the ill effects of radiation exposure. There are usually two shields: several metres of high-density concrete to protect the walls of the reactor core from radiation leakage and to help reflect neutrons back into the core and a biological shield to protect personnel made of several centimetres of high density concrete. |
| (natural) radioactive decay | The spontaneous emission by the nuclei of certain atoms, of radiation in the form of alpha particles or beta particles and/or gamma radiation. The decay process cannot be controlled by chemical and physical means. |
| radiation | the energy produced by a source because of its temperature that travels as electromagnetic waves. It does not need the presence of matter for its transfer. |
| moderator | heavy water (water full of graphite) that helps absorb the neutrons in a nuclear reactor. |
| strong nuclear interaction | the short range force of attraction between nucleons. |
| neutrino | a particle with zero rest mass and zero charge that results from beta-plus decay. |
| critical mass | the smallest possible amount of fissionable material that will sustain a chain reaction. |
| emission spectra | the spectra produced by excited gaseous atoms or molecules as they move from a higher energy state to a lower energy state. |
| absorption spectrum | occurs when white light passes through a substance in the gaseous phase. As the particles move from a lower energy state to a higher energy state. Dark lines in the white light correspond to the wavelengths characteristic of the emission spectrum of the particular substance. |
| atomic mass unit (u) | this is 1/12th of the mass of an atom of carbon-12. |
| a nucleon | a proton or a neutron |
| half-life | time for the activity to halve in value / time for the number of nuclei to transmute to nuclei of another element |
| chain reaction | each neutron can fission another uranium nucleus; The neutrons produced in this fission can produce further fissions and so on; |
| mass defect | difference in mass between mass of nucleus; and mass of (totally) separate nucleons; |
| decay constant | the probability that a nucleus will decay in unit time. |
| artificial transmutation | a process by which nuclei of an element can be induced to from nuclei of a different element often by the bombardment with neutrons. |
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