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AQA A Level Physics(Option A: Astrophysics) > Particles and Radiation > Flashcards

Particles and Radiation Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the relative charge of a proton?

A

+1

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2
Q

What is the relative charge of a electron?

A

-1

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3
Q

Relative charge of a neutron

A

0

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4
Q

Relative mass of a proton

A

1

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5
Q

Relative mass of an electron

A

1/1820

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6
Q

Relative mass of a neutron

A

1

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7
Q

What letter is used to represent nucleon number?

A

A

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8
Q

What letter is used to represent proton number?

A

Z

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9
Q

What is the equation for specific charge?

A

Specific charge(C/Kg) = charge(C)/mass(Kg)

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10
Q

What are isotopes?

A

Isotopes are atoms with the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons

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11
Q

How does adding more neutrons affect an atom?

A

Adding more neutrons makes an atom more unstable. These unstable nuclei may be radioactive and decay to make themselves more stable

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12
Q

What is the range of the strong nuclear force?

A

< 3fm

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13
Q

When is the strong nuclear force repulsive?

A

When nucleon separation is less than 0.5fm

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14
Q

When is the strong nuclear force attractive?

A

When nucleon separation is between 0.5fm - 3fm

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15
Q

What are the forces that act within nuclei?

A
  • Gravitational force
  • Strong nuclear force
  • Electromagnetic force
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16
Q

What does the electromagnetic force do in nuclei?

A

It causes the positively charged protons to repel each other

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17
Q

What is the range of the electromagnetic repulsive force?

A

Infinite

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18
Q

What type of atoms does alpha decay occur for?

A

Very big atoms with greater than 82 protons

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19
Q

What is an alpha particle?

A

A particle made up of 2 neutrons and two protons (A helium nucleus)

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20
Q

What is beta minus decay?

A

The emission of an electron from the nucleus along with an antineutrino particle

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21
Q

What type of atoms does beta minus decay from?

A

Atoms that are neutron rich (have too many neutrons)

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22
Q

What happens to the nucleons of an atom that undergoes beta minus decay?

A
  • One of the neutrons in the nucleus is changed into a proton
  • Proton number increases by one, nucleon number stays the same
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23
Q

Describe how the neutrino was theorised

A
  • Scientist originally thought only an electron was emitted during beta decay
  • However observations showed energy of the particles after beta decay was less than before which didn’t fit the principle of energy conservation
  • It was then hypothesised that another particle was emitted and it carried away the remaining energy but it had to be neutral, and near zero mass
  • This hypothesis was later accepted and this particle was named the neutrino
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24
Q

What is the electromagnetic spectrum?

A

A continuous spectrum of all the possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation

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25
Q

What are the traits of an antiparticle compared to corresponding particle?

A

Same mass and rest energy but opposite charge

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26
Q

Define pair production

A
  • Energy is converted into mass in the form of a particle-antiparticle pair
  • Only occurs when there is enough energy to produce the masses of the particles
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27
Q

State the equation for minimum energy needed for pair production

A

E(min) in MeV = 2Eo where Eo = Rest energy of particle type produced in MeV

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28
Q

Define annihilation

A

Matter and antimatter meet and mass is converted directly into energy in the form of two gamma ray photons which travel in opposite directions

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29
Q

State the equation for minimum energy needed for annihilation

A

E(min) in MeV = Eo where Eo = Rest energy of particle type annihilated in MeV

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30
Q

State an application that uses annihilation and describe how it works

A
  • PET scanners work by putting a positron-emitting isotope into the bloodstream, and detecting the gamma rays produced by the electron-positron annihilation occurring
  • A scintillator is used to detect gamma rays which are easy to distinguish as these gamma rays are always produced in pairs moving in opposite directions
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31
Q

What are hadrons?

A

Particles that feel the strong nuclear force

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32
Q

What are the types of hadrons?

A

Baryons and mesons

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33
Q

What is the most stable baryon which all particles baryons end up decaying to?

A

The proton

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34
Q

State the baryon numbers of baryons, antibaryons and other particles?

A
  • Baryons = +1
  • Antibaryons = -1
  • Other particles = 0
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35
Q

What is neutron decay?

A

Beta-minus decay caused by the weak interaction where a neutron decays into a proton, an electron and an antineutrino

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36
Q

State 2 characteristics of mesons

A
  • Mesons are all unstable
  • Quark and antiquark pair
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37
Q

State 2 types of mesons

A

Pions and Kaons

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38
Q

Which quark is always in a kaon?

A

Strange quark

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39
Q

Describe pions

A
  • Pions are the lightest mesons.
  • There are 3 types: π+, π–, π0
  • π– is just the antiparticle of π+
  • The antiparticle of π0 is itself
  • Pions are exchange particles of the strong nuclear force
40
Q

Describe kaons

A
  • Kaons are heavier and more unstable than pions
  • There are 3 types: K+, K-, Ko
  • K+ is the antiparticle of K-
  • Antiparticle of Ko is itself
  • Kaons have very short lifespans and decay into pions
41
Q

Define cosmic rays

A

Radiation in the form of high-energy, charged particles that come from space and hit Earth

42
Q

Define cosmic ray showers

A

Cosmic rays interacting with molecules in the atmosphere to produce showers of lots of high-energy particles, including pions and kaons

43
Q

How are mesons detected?

A
  • Cosmic ray showers can be detected with the use of two Geiger counters placed one above the other, separated by absorbing lead.
  • If both counters detect radiation simultaneously, it’s very likely a particle from a cosmic ray shower being detected (pions and kaons)
44
Q

What are leptons?

A

Fundamental particles which don’t feel the strong nuclear force

45
Q

State 4 types of leptons

A
  • Electron
  • Electron neutrino
  • Muon
  • Muon neutrino
46
Q

State the properties of neutrinos

A
  • Almost zero mass
  • Zero electric charge
47
Q

What are the two types of lepton numbers?

A

Le and Lμ

48
Q

State the symbol, relative charge and lepton numbers of each lepton

A

Electron: symbol = e- ; relative charge = -1 ; Le number = +1 ; Lμ number = 0
Electron neutrino: symbol = νe ; relative charge = 0 ; Le number = +1 ; Lμ number = 0
Muon: symbol = μ ; relative charge = -1 ; Le number = 0 ; Lμ number = +1
Muon neutrino: symbol = vμ ; relative charge = 0 ; Le number = 0 ; Lμ number = +1

49
Q

What must be conserved in particles interactions?

A

Baryon number, lepton number, charge, energy and momentum

50
Q

State the properties of strange particles

A
  • Quantum number, like baryon and lepton number
  • Created by the strong interaction, in which strangeness is conserved
  • Conservation means strange particles can only be created in pairs
  • All leptons have a strangeness of 0
  • Strange particles decay through the weak interaction
  • Strangeness is not conserved in the weak interaction
51
Q

When is strangeness conserved?

A

For strong interactions and in some weak interactions, such as beta-decay

52
Q

State the properties of quarks

A

Up: symbol = u ; charge = +2/3 ; baryon number = +1/3 ; strangeness = 0
Down: symbol = d ; charge = -1/3 ; baryon number = +1/3 ; strangeness = 0
Strange: symbol = s ; charge = -1/3 ; baryon number = +1/3 ; strangeness = -1

Antiquarks have opposite properties, up quark charge = -2/3

53
Q

What is the quark composition of a baryon?

A

3 quarks

54
Q

What is the quark composition of an antibaryon?

A

3 antiquarks

55
Q

What is the quark composition of a meson?

A

1 quark and 1 antiquark

56
Q

What is the quark composition of a proton?

A

uud

57
Q

What is the quark composition of a neutron?

A

udd

58
Q

What is the quark composition of a pion?

A

Combinations of up, down and anti-up, anti-down quarks

59
Q

What is the quark composition of a kaon?

A

Kaons have strangeness, so an up or down or anti-up or anti-down with a strange quark

60
Q

What is quark confinement?

A
  • It’s impossible to get a quark by itself
  • The energy used trying to remove a quark only creates a quark antiquark pair in a pair production
61
Q

State how the quark composition changes in beta-minus decay

A

A d quark turns into a u quark

62
Q

State how the quark composition changes in beta-plus decay

A

A u quark turns into a d quark

63
Q

Define exchange particle

A

A virtual particle which allows forces to act in a particle interaction. Also known as gauge bosons

64
Q

State the type of interactions

A

Strong nuclear
Electromagnetic
Weak nuclear
Gravitational

65
Q

State the exchange particle of the strong nuclear force interaction

A

Pions: Gluons, mesons

66
Q

State the exchange particle of the electromagnetic force interaction

A

Virtual photons(γ)

67
Q

State the exchange particle of the weak nuclear force interaction

A

W+, W- bosons

68
Q

State the exchange particle of the gravitational force interaction

A

Graviton

69
Q

State the range of the gravitational force interaction

A

Infinite

70
Q

State the range of the weak nuclear force interaction

A

10^-3fm

71
Q

State the symbol form of beta-minus decay

A

n -> p + e- + ̅Ve

72
Q

What should be the layout for a particle interaction diagram?

A

Baryons on the left, leptons on the right, exchange particle in the middle

73
Q

State the symbol form of beta-plus decay

A

p -> n + e+ + Ve

74
Q

What is electron capture?

A

When proton rich nuclei capture an electron capture an electron from inside the atom and change into a neutron and electron neutrino

75
Q

State the symbol form of electron capture

A

p + e- -> n + Ve

76
Q

What happens in electromagnetic repulsion?

A

Two particles with equal charge interact, causing them to repel. The exchange particle is the virtual photon

77
Q

What is the difference between electron capture and electron-proton collisions?

A

In electron-proton collisions, it is the electron that’s acting as it’s being fired at the proton. The W boson then comes from the electron, making it W-

78
Q

What does the word “specific” refer to in “Specific Charge” or “Specific heat capacity”?

A

Per unit mass

79
Q

Define relative mass

A

The mass of a particle relative to the mass of a proton

80
Q

Define relative charge

A

The charge of a particle relative to the charge of a proton

81
Q

State the letter used to represent the neutron number

A

N

82
Q

What is a gamma particle?

A

A high energy photon

83
Q

How is an excited nucleus denoted in an equation?

A

By an asterisk

84
Q

What is the difference between an electron and a beta particle?

A

Beta particles have much more energy than electrons (Beta particles eject from the nucleus at 98% of the speed of light)

85
Q

State the particles acted upon by the gravitational force interaction

A

Particles with a mass

86
Q

State the particles acted upon by the weak nuclear force interaction

A

All particles

87
Q

State the particles acted upon by the strong nuclear force interaction

A

Quarks, baryons

88
Q

State the particles acted upon by the electromagnetic force interaction

A

Particles with a charge

89
Q

Which quark has the most energy?

A

Strange quark

90
Q

What is the exchange particle in beta-minus decay?

A

W- boson

91
Q

What is the exchange particle in beta-plus decay?

A

W+ boson

92
Q

What is the exchange particle in electron capture?

A

W+ boson

93
Q

What is the exchange particle in electron-proton collisions?

A

W- boson

94
Q

What is the exchange particle of electromagnetic repulsion?

A

Virtual photon

95
Q

State the 6 leptons

A
  • Electron
  • Muon
  • Tauon
  • Electron neutrino
  • Muon neutrino
  • Tauon neutrino

AQA A Level Physics(Option A: Astrophysics) (15 decks)

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