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The net binding energy of a nucleus is that of the nuclear attraction, minus the disruptive energy of the electric force. As nuclei get heavier than helium, their net binding energy per nucleon (deduced from the difference in mass between the nucleus and the sum of masses of component nucleons) grows more and more slowly, reaching its peak at iron.
Helium is composed of two electrons bound by the electromagnetic force to a nucleus containing two protons along with two neutrons, depending on the isotope, held together by the strong force. Unlike for hydrogen , a closed-form solution to the Schrödinger equation for the helium atom has not been found.
Each proton or neutron's energy state in a nucleus can accommodate both a spin up particle and a spin down particle. Helium-4 has an anomalously large binding energy because its nucleus consists of two protons and two neutrons (it is a doubly magic nucleus), so all four of its nucleons can be in the ground state. Any additional nucleons would ...
Some stable helium-3 (two protons and one neutron) is produced in fusion reactions from hydrogen, though its estimated abundance in the universe is about 10 −5 relative to helium-4. [92] Binding energy per nucleon of common isotopes. The binding energy per particle of helium-4 is significantly larger than all nearby nuclides.
The atomic binding energy of the atom is the energy required to disassemble an atom into free electrons and a nucleus. [4] It is the sum of the ionization energies of all the electrons belonging to a specific atom. The atomic binding energy derives from the electromagnetic interaction of the electrons with the nucleus, mediated by photons.
The helium atom. Depicted are the nucleus (pink) and the electron cloud distribution (black). The nucleus (upper right) in helium-4 is in reality spherically symmetric and closely resembles the electron cloud, although for more complicated nuclei this is not always the case. Helium-4 (4 He) is a stable isotope of the element helium.
The binding energy is subtracted from the sum of the proton and neutron masses because the mass of the nucleus is less than that sum. This property, called the mass defect , is necessary for a stable nucleus; within a nucleus, the nuclides are trapped by a potential well .
This simple model reproduces the main features of the binding energy of nuclei. The assumption of nucleus as a drop of Fermi liquid is still widely used in the form of Finite Range Droplet Model (FRDM), due to the possible good reproduction of nuclear binding energy on the whole chart, with the necessary accuracy for predictions of unknown ...