8A. and she like a model, oh woah [COMPLETE] Flashcards
nuclear & particle physics (nuclear)
What is the nucleon/mass number?
The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus
What is the proton/atomic number?
The total number of protons in the nucleus.
What is an isotope?
An isotope is an atom of the same element that has an equal number of protons but a different number of neutrons.
What are the isotopes of hydrogen?
Protium (normal), deuterium, and tritium.
What is the simple experimental set up for alpha particle scattering?
Alpha particles fired at thin gold foil and a detector on the other side to detect how many particles deflected at different angles.
What are alpha particles?
The nucleus of a helium atom and is positively charged.
What is the charge of an alpha particle?
+2
What are the observations from the alpha particle scattering experiment?
- Majority went straight through without deflection.
- Some were deflected at small angles less than 10°.
- Only a small number were deflected straight back at angles of greater than 90°.
What deductions can be made when the alpha particles went straight through the gold foil?
It suggested that atoms are mainly made up of empty space.
What deductions can be made when the alpha particles were deflected at angles <10°?
This suggested there is a positive nucleus at the centre as two positive charges would repel.
What deductions can be made when the alpha particles were deflected back at angles >90°?
This suggested the nucleus is extremely small and where the mass and charge of the atom is concentrated. Therefore, atoms consist of small dense positively charged nuclei.
What was Dalton’s model of atomic structure?
- Billard ball model.
- All matter were made of tiny solid particles called atoms.
- Atoms were the smallest constituent of matter and cannot be broken down any further.
- Atoms of the given element are identical to each other. Atoms of different elements are different to each other.
- When chemical reactions occur, the atoms rearrange to make different substances.
What was Thomson’s model of atomic structure?
- He discovered the electron.
- Plum pudding model.
- Atoms contain positive and negative charges in equal amounts so overall is neutral.
- The atom was modelled as spheres of positive charge with uniformly distributed charge and density. The negatively charged electrons were stuck onto the sphere like in a plum pudding.
What was Rutherford’s model of atomic structure?
- Planetary model of atom.
- Atoms have a central, positively charged nucleus with the majority of the mass. Electrons orbit the nucleus like planets around a star.
What was Bohr’s model of atomic structure?
- Improvement of the planetary model.
- Electrons occupy shells or energy levels around the nucleus at particular distances from the nucleus.
What is the quantum mechanical model of atomic structure?
The likelihood of finding an electron in a certain position.
- Nucleus surrounded by electron clouds. If the cloud is dense, there is a greater chance of finding an electron there.
- The neutron was later discovered.
What is thermionic emission?
When an electron gains enough energy from heat and is able to leave the surface of a metal.
What is the difference between thermionic emissions and photoelectric effect?
Energy absorbed by electrons are thermal energy rather than photons.
What can we do to the electrons once they are released?
We can accelerate them using an electric field or a magnetic field.
What is the velocity of the electron emitted by thermionic emission?
Voltage = Energy/Charge
Energy = VoltageCharge = eV
K.E. = eV = 1/2 * m * v^2
v = sqr rt ( (2charge*voltage) / mass)
What is a linear accelerator?
A linear accelerator (LINAC) is a particle accelerator that accelerates ions to very high speeds in straight lines.
What do LINACs use to accelerate these ions?
They use electric fields within and between metallic tubes which act as oppositely charged electrodes.
What are LINACs comprised of?
A series of hollow cylindrical tubes of progressively increasing length each connected to an AC power supply.
What occurs in a LINAC?
The ion is injected.
The ions are attracted to the midpoint of a tube.
At this point, the AC supply switches so the electrons are repelled to the exit and are attracted to the midpoint of the next tube.
This continues until the end of the accelerator.
What is the frequency of the AC supply switching?
Fixed, the polarity of each tube switches at a constant rate.
Why does the length of electrodes on an LINAC increase
the length of the electrodes increase so that the particle has the same acceleration even when it is moving faster.
Tubes switch polarity.
Why are linac tubes at the end the same length?
The speed of the particle has become a maximum.
What is a cyclotron?
A type of particle accelerator that accelerates ions from a central entry point around a spiral point.
What is a cyclotron used for?
Producing medical isotopes (tracers). Creating high-energy beams of radiation for radiotherapy.
What are cyclotrons comprised of?
Two hollow semicircular electrodes called “dees”. A uniform magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the electrodes. An AC power supply is applied across each dee, which creates an electric field in the gap between them.
How does a cyclotron accelerate an ion?
A source of ions is placed in the centre of the cyclotron.
They are fired into one of the dees.
The magnetic field makes them follow a circular path since it is perpendicular to their motion until they leave the dee.
The p.d. between the dees accelerates the ions across the gap to the next dee, due to the electric field in the gap.
The p.d. switches as it nears the exit, and it accelerates across the gap again to the other dee.
This cycle is repeated until they have a large enough speed and exits the cyclotron.
Why alternate potential difference is needed for a cyclotron?
So the particles can accelerate across the gap between the dees. Otherwise, the ions would only speed up in one direction.
What happens when charged particles pass through any type of medium?
They transfer energy to it.
What happens in the process of ionisation?
High-energy ions transfer some of their energy to the surrounding atoms. Hence removing electrons. The particles are accelerated by the electric field. Once they are discharged, they form pulses of electric current.
How the pulses of electric currents counted?
By electric counters connected by electrodes.
What are the counts counted by these electric counters?
They are interpreted as the detection of individual particles.
What particle detectors use ionisation as the principle on how they operate?
Geiger-Muller tubes. Spark chambers. Gas and cloud chambers.
What is the difference between how a LINAC and a cyclotron operates?
LINAC only uses electric fields. Cyclotrons use both electric and magnetic fields.
What are the two key principles which allow scientists to detect particles?
Ionisation and deflection.
How do you detect charged particles?
Charged particles cause ionisation, therefore, leave a trail of ions.
What are cloud chambers?
Supercooled vapour condenses when a particle passes through.
What are bubble chambers?
Hydrogen kept as a liquid (above normal boiling point). If you quickly reduce the pressure bubbles of gas form where there are trails of ions.
What is ionisation?
Electrons have been removed/added from a molecule.
What is the force that causes the deflection of charged particles?
electrostatic repulsion
What happens to the path of deflection if the charge is twice as much?
- deflection starts earlier
- the final deflection is greater
What is the use of electric fields in particle detectors?
- used to accelerate/deflect particles
- direction of deflection indicates charge (work is done to make particle move in same direction as the field)
Derive a = EQ/m
F = EQ F=ma
a = EQ/m
What is the use of magnetic fields in particle detectors?
- produces circular motion
- direction of curvature indicates force (flemings LHR)
- momentum found from radius of curvature
What is the equation for the kinetic energy transferred when a charge accelerates across a potential difference?
E = QV
What do electric fields do to a charged particle?
accelerate particles (speed up + change direction)
What do magnetic fields do to a charged particle?
accelerate particles (change the direction into a circular path)