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Its mass is slightly less than the mass of a neutron and approximately 1836 times the mass of an electron (the proton-to-electron mass ratio). Protons and neutrons, each with a mass of approximately one atomic mass unit, are jointly referred to as nucleons (particles present in atomic nuclei). One or more protons are present in the nucleus of ...
In many substances, thermal neutron reactions show a much larger effective cross-section than reactions involving faster neutrons, and thermal neutrons can therefore be absorbed more readily (i.e., with higher probability) by any atomic nuclei that they collide with, creating a heavier – and often unstable – isotope of the chemical element ...
Mass excess should not be confused with mass defect which is the difference between the mass of an atom and its constituent particles (namely protons, neutrons and electrons). There are two reasons for mass excess: The neutron is slightly heavier than the proton.
The neutron–proton ratio (N/Z ratio or nuclear ratio) of an atomic nucleus is the ratio of its number of neutrons to its number of protons.Among stable nuclei and naturally occurring nuclei, this ratio generally increases with increasing atomic number. [1]
The conversion of protons to neutrons is the result of another nuclear force, known as the weak (nuclear) force. The weak force, like the strong force, has a short range, but is much weaker than the strong force. The weak force tries to make the number of neutrons and protons into the most energetically stable configuration.
The heaviest stable element, lead (Pb), has many more neutrons than protons. The stable nuclide 206 Pb has Z = 82 and N = 124, for example. For this reason, the valley of stability does not follow the line Z = N for A larger than 40 ( Z = 20 is the element calcium ). [ 3 ]
An even number of protons or neutrons is more stable (higher binding energy) because of pairing effects, so even–even nuclides are much more stable than odd–odd. One effect is that there are few stable odd–odd nuclides: in fact only five are stable, with another four having half-lives longer than a billion years. [citation needed]
Protons define the entire charge of a nucleus, and hence its chemical identity. Neutrons are electrically neutral, but contribute to the mass of a nucleus to nearly the same extent as the protons. Neutrons can explain the phenomenon of isotopes (same atomic number with different atomic mass). The main role of neutrons is to reduce electrostatic ...