particles and radiation

Question 1

what does the strong nuclear force do

Answer 1

keeps the nucleus stable since it holds quarks together
since protons and neutrons are made up of quarks, the strong force keeps them bound within a nucleus

Question 2

describe beta plus decay

Answer 2

A beta-plus, β+, particle is a high energy positron emitted from the nucleus
β+ decay is when a proton turns into a neutron emitting a positron (anti-electron) and an electron neutrino
The number of protons decreases by 1: proton number decreases by 1
The total number of nucleons stays the same: nucleon number remains the same

Question 3

describe beta minus decay

Answer 3

A beta-minus, β-, particle is a high energy electron emitted from the nucleus
β- decay is when a neutron turns into a proton emitting an electron and an anti-electron neutrino
The number of protons increases by 1: proton number increases by 1
The total number of nucleons stays the same: nucleon number remains the same

Question 4

what is an electron neutrino

Answer 4

a type of subatomic particle with no charge and negligible mass which is also emitted from the nucleus

Question 5

what did the existence of the neutrino hypothesise

Answer 5

its existence was hypothesised to account for the conservation of energy in beta decay

Question 6

specific charge meaning

Answer 6

the ratio of a particle’s charge to its mass