Chapter 13

NUCLEUS

Compositition of Nucleus
The Nucleus of an atom consists of a tightly packed arrangement of
protons and neutrons. These are the two heavy particles in an atom
and hence 99.9% of the mass is concentrated in the nucleus. Of the
two, the protons possess a net positive charge and hence the nucleus
of an atom is positively charged on the whole and the negatively
charged electrons revolve around the central nucleus.
Proton is positively charged particle
mass of proton is 1.67262192 × 10-27 kilograms
charge of proton is 1.6022 x 10-19 coulomb
neutron is electrically neutral particle
charge of neutron is zero
mass of neutron is 1.67262192 × 10-27 kilograms
A nucleus is represented by ZXA
Where Z is the Atomic number
X is chemical symbol
A is atomic mass.
Isotopes The atoms of an element which have the same atomic
number but different mass number are called isotopes. Such atoms
contain the same number of protons and electrons but different
number of neutrons. Because of their similar electronic configuration,
isotopes of an element exhibit similar chemical properties but
different physical properties and they occupy the same position in the
periodic table.
Isotones The nuclides having the same number of neutrons are
called isotones. For example,
1. 17Cl37 and 19K39 K are isotones, as both contain the same number of
neutrons i.e., for both
N = A - Z = 20
2. 80Hg198 and 79 Pu197 are isotones, as for both
N = A - Z = 118
Isomers These are the nuclei with same atomic number and same
mass number but existing in different energy states. For example, a
nucleus in its ground state and the identical nucleus in metastable
excited state are isomers.
Atomic mass unit. The mass of the carbon-12 atom is 1.992678 ×
10-26 kg, which is very small. Therefore, X it is useful to choose a
convenient unit for expressing the mass of atoms. This unit is defined
by taking mass of carbon-12 atom equal to 12 atomic mass units.
1
1 One atomic mass unit is defined as th of the actual mass of
12
carbon-12 atom.
Atomic mass unit is denoted by amu or just by u.Thus
1
1 kg 1 amu= x Mass of carbon-12 atom
12
Accounting to Avogadro
mass of one mole of carbon -12 = 12 gram
mass of 6.023 x1023 of carbon -12 = 12 gram
12
mass of 1 atom of carbon 12 =
6.023 x1023

1 amu= 1.660539 x 10-27 kg

Note We can now express different masses in terms of amu.
Mass of an electron, me = 0.00055 amu
Mass of a proton, mp = 1.0073 amu
Mass of a neutron,mn = 1.0086 amu
Mass of a hydrogen atom,
The atomic masses can be measured accurately by using an
instrument called mass spectrometer.
Energy equivalent of 1 amu The Einstein's mass-energy equivalence
relation is
E = mc2
This relation shows that the energy content of an object is equal to its
mass times the square of the speed of light. To determine the energy
equivalent of one atomic mass unit, we take
m=1amu=1.660539 × 10-27 kg
c=2.998 x 108 m/s
Then
E = mc2
E = 1.660539 × 10-27 × (3 × 108)2 J
=1.660539 × 10-27 × (3 × 108)2 x 1.6 × 10-19 X eV
=931 MeV
1 amu = 931 MeV.
Nuclear size Like an atom, a nucleus is not a solid object. Its surface
is not a well-defined boundary. Still we can assign a size to the
nucleus.
Experimental observations show that the volume of a nucleus is
directly proportional to its mass number.
If R is the radius of a nucleus having mass number A, then
VαA
4 πR³ α A
R α A1/3
R = Ro A1/3
Here Ro is a constant its value is 1.2 x 10-15m.
Nuclear Density The density of nuclear matter is the ratio of the
mass of a nucleus to its volume. The density of nuclear matter is
independent of the size of the nucleus.
Let A be the mass number and R be the radius of a nucleus. If m is
the average mass of a nucleon, then Mass of nucleus = mA
Volume of nucleus
4
V= πR3
3
4
V= π(Ro A1/3)3
3
4
V= πRo3 A
3
Mass of nucleus
Nuclear density =
Volume of nucleus
= 3m/4 πRo3
Clearly, nuclear density is independent of mass number A or the size
of the nucleus.
Taking m=1.67 × 10-27kg ; R = 1.2 × 10-15 m
Nuclear density = 2.30 x 1017 kg /m3
Thus the nuclear mass density is of the order 10 17 kg/m3. This
density is very large as compared to the density of ordinary matter.
Mass defect It is found that the mass of a stable nucleus is always
less than the sum of the masses of its constituent protons and
neutrons in their free state.
The difference between the rest mass of a nucleus and the sum of the
rest masses of its constituent nucleons is called its mass defect.
Consider the nucleus ZXA. It has Z protons and (A-Z) neutrons. If Mc
is calculated mass and Ma is actual mass. Therefore, its mass defect
will be
∆m = Mc - Ma
∆m = Zmp + (A - Z)mn -Ma
where mp, mn, and Ma are the rest masses of a proton, neutron and
the nucleus ZXA respectively.
Binding energy An atomic nucleus is a stable structure. Inside it, the
protons and neutrons are bound together by means of strong
attractive nuclear forces. Thus a definite amount of work is required
to be done to break up the nucleus into its constituent particles and
to place them at infinite distance from one another. This work gives a
measure of the binding energy of the nucleus.
“The binding energy of a nucleus may be defined as the energy
required to break up a nucleus into its constituent protons and
neutrons and to separate them to such a large distance that they may
not interact with each other.”
It is denoted by Eb.
According to Einstein’s mass energy relation we know that
E = mc2
Here mass defect is converting into energy so
Eb = ∆m c2
Eb = (Mc - Ma )c2
Eb = {Zmp + (A - Z)mn -Ma } c2
So the binding energy may also be defined as the surplus energy
which the nucleons give up by virtue of their attractions when they
become bound together to form a nucleus. The energy equivalent to
the mass defect is radiated in the form of electromagnetic radiation
when the nucleons combine to form a nucleus.
Binding energy per nucleon The binding energy per nucleon is the
average energy required to extract one nucleon from the nucleus. It is
obtained by dividing the binding energy of a nucleus by its mass
number. It is denoted by ∆Ebn. The expression for binding energy per
nucleon can be written as
∆Ebn = Eb/A
∆Ebn = {Zmp + (A - Z)mn -Ma } c2/A
The binding energy per nucleon gives a measure of the force which
binds the nucleons together inside a nucleus.

Binding Energy Per Nucleon Curve

The curve between binding energy per nucleon and atomic mass of
nucleus is called binding energy per nucleon curve.

The binding energy curve reveals the following important features:

1. Except for some nuclei like He 4, C12 and O16, the values of binding
energy per nucleon lie on or near a smooth curve.
2. The B.E. /nucleon is small for light nuclei like 1H1, 1H2 and 1H3
3. In the mass number range 2 to 20, there are well defined maxima
and minima on the curve. The maxima occur for 2He4, 6C12 and 8O16,
indicating the higher stability of these nuclei than the neighbouring
ones. The minima, corresponding to low stability, occur for Li, B and
7N14.
4. The curve has a broad maximum close to the value 8.5
MeV/nucleon in the mass number range from about 40 to 120. It has
a peak value of 8.8 MeV/nucleon for 26Fe.
5. As the mass number increases further, the B.E./nucleon shows a
gradual decrease and drops to 7.6 MeV/nucleon for 235U. This
decrease is due to coulomb repulsion between the protons which
makes the heavier nuclei less stable.
Importance of binding energy curve The binding energy curve can
be used to explain the phenomena of nuclear fission and nuclear
fusion as follows:
1. Nuclear fission. Binding energy per nucleon is smaller for heavier
nuclei than the middle ones, ie., heavier nuclei are less stable. When
a heavier nucleus splits into the lighter nuclei, the B.E./nucleon
changes from about 7.6 MeV to 8.4 MeV. Greater binding energy of
the product nuclei results in the liberation of energy. This is what
happens in nuclear fission which is the basis of the atom bomb.
2. Nuclear fusion. The binding energy per nucleon is small for light
nuclei, i.e., they are less stable. So when two light nuclei combine to
form a heavier nucleus, the higher binding energy per nucleon of the
latter results in the release of energy. This is what happens in a
nuclear fusion which is the basis of the hydrogen bomb.

Nuclear force The average separation between two nucleons is about

10-15 m. At this separation, positively charged protons feel strong
coulombic repulsion. Also the gravitational force of attraction between
two nucleons is about 10-36 times smaller than the electrostatic
repulsion, it cannot hold the nucleons together. So there must be
some other strong attractive force acting between the nucleons that
over-comes the electrostatic repulsion. This strong attractive
interaction acting between the nucleons is called nuclear force or
strong interaction.
Nuclear force is a strong attractive force that binds the protons and
neutrons together inside a tiny nucleus.
Properties of nuclear force :
1. Strongest interaction Nuclear force is the strongest interaction
known in nature that holds the nucleons together despite the strong
electrostatic repulsion between the protons. The relative strength of
gravitational, electrostatic and nuclear forces is
Fg :Fe :Fn = 1 : 1036: 1038
2. Short-range force Unlike gravitational and electrostatic forces,
nuclear force is a short-range force. It operates only upto a very short
distance of about 2-3 fm from a nucleon.
3. Variation with distance The graph of P.E. of a pair of nucleons as
a function of their separation r is shown in Fig. 13.4. The P.E. is
minimum at a distance ro~0.8 fm.

4. Charge independent character It is seen from experiments that

the attractive force between two neutrons (nn-force) is nearly equal to
that between two protons (pp-force) or between a proton and a
neutron (pn-force). Thus the nuclear force does not depend on the
charge of the particles.
In case of pp-nuclear force, there is a repulsive force between two
protons, but this is weak compared to the strong nuclear force.
5. Saturation effect Nuclear forces show saturation effect, i.e., a
nucleon interacts only with its neighbouring nucleon. This property is
supported by the fact that the binding energy per nucleon is same
over a wide range of mass numbers.
6. Spin dependent character The nuclear force between two
nucleons having parallel spins is stronger than that between two
nucleons having antiparallel spins.
7. Exchange forces A Japanese physicist H.Yukawa suggested that
the nuclear force between two nucleons arises from the constant
exchange of particles, called mesons, between them.
8. Non-central forces The nuclear force between two nucleons does
not act along the line joining their centres.

Nuclear reaction A reaction which involves the change of stable

nucleus of one element into the nucleus of another element is called
nuclear reaction. It is usually caused by bombarding the reacting
species with suitable high energy particles.
7N14 + 2He4 → 8O17 +1H1
In any nuclear reaction, the following quantities are conserved:
1. Momentum The total momentum of the particles entering into the
reaction is equal to the total momentum of the products after the
reaction.
2. Nucleons The total number of nucleons before and after the
reaction remains the same.
3. Charge The total charge of the product particles is equal to that of
the reactant particles.
4. Energy The total energy (kinetic energy + rest mass energy) of the
product particles is equal to the total energy of the reactant particles.

A nuclear reaction vs a chemical reaction A nuclear reaction

differs markedly from a chemical reaction. In a chemical reaction,
only the electrons revolving around the nucleus take part in the
reaction and no change occurs inside the nucleus whereas in a
nuclear reaction, the nucleus itself undergoes a trans- formation. The
energy changes involved in chemical reactions are much smaller than
the energy changes involved in nuclear reactions.

Types of Nuclear Energy There are two types of nuclear reaction

1. Nuclear fission The reaction in which a heavy nucleus splits up

into two smaller nuclei, liberating a large amount of energy as in an
atom bomb.
2. Nuclear fusion The reaction in which two smaller nuclei fuse
together to form a larger nucleus, releasing a large amount of energy
as in a hydrogen bomb.

Nuclear fission. The phenomenon in which a heavy nucleus (A > 230)

when excited splits into two smaller nuclei of nearly comparable
masses is called nuclear fission.
When uranium is bombarded by slow moving neutrons, a 92U235
nucleus gets excited by capturing a slow moving neutron and splits
into two nearly equal fragments like 56Ba141 and 36Kr92 alongwith the
emission of 3 neutrons. The nuclear reaction involved can be written
as
92U235 + 0n1 → 56Ba141 + 36 Kr92 +3(0n1 )+ Q
The Q-value of this reaction is about 200 MeV.

Nuclear chain reaction Nuclear fission is a peculiar type of reaction

which, besides the other fission. products, produces the same kind of
particles that initiate it, viz., neutrons.
When a single U235 nucleus captures a neutron, its fission produces
2.5 neutrons. These freshly produced electrons can further cause the
fission of more uranium nuclei, producing still more neutrons, which
can further cause the fission of a larger number of nuclei, and so on.
The number of fissions taking place at each successive stage goes on
increasing at a rapid rate (rather in a geometric progression). Thus a
chain reaction is set up, as illustrated in Fig.

Uncontrolled chain reaction If a chain reaction is started in a

fissionable material having mass greater than certain critical mass,
then the reaction will accelerate at such a rapid rate that the whole
material will explode within a microsecond, liberating a huge amount
of energy. Such a chain reaction is called uncontrolled chain reaction.
It forms the underlying principle of the atomic bombs.

Controlled chain reaction The chain reaction can be controlled and

maintained steady by absorbing a suitable number of neutrons at
each stage of the reaction, so that on an average one neutron remains
available for exciting further fission. Such a reaction is called
controlled chain reaction. Here the energy released does not get out of
control. A nuclear reactor works on the principle of a controlled chain
reaction.

MULTIPLICATION FACTOR AND

CRITICAL SIZE

Multiplication factor Whether a chain reaction, once started in a

fissionable mass, will remain steady, increase or decrease, depends
on a parameter called multiplication factor. The multiplication factor
of a fissionable mass is defined as the ratio of the number of neutrons
present at the beginning of a particular generation to the number of
neutrons present at the beginning of the previous generation. Thus
k=
Number of neutrons present at the beginning of one generation
Number of neutrons present at the beginning of previous generation
The multiplication factor k gives a measure of the growth rate of the
neutrons in a fissionable mass.
If k>1, the chain reaction grows.
If k = 1, the chain reaction remains steady.
If k <1, the chain reaction gradually dies out.
Critical size and critical mass Whether the mass of a fissionable
material can sustain a chain reaction or not, depends on its
multiplication factor and also depends on the size of the material. The
size of the fissionable material for which the multiplication factor k =
1, is called critical size and its mass is called critical mass. The chain
reaction in this case remains steady or sustained.
If k>1, the neutron population increases exponentially with time and
the size of the material is said to be supercritical. The chain reaction
builds up at a fast rate and results in an explosion.
If k<1, the neutrons population decreases exponentially with time
and the size of the material is said to be subcritical. The chain
reaction gradually comes to an end.
Nuclear reactor It is a device in which a nuclear chain reaction is
initiated, maintained and controlled. It works on the principle of
controlled chain reaction and provides energy at a constant rate

Main parts of a nuclear reactor :

1. Nuclear fuel It is the material that can be fissioned by neutrons.
The isotopes like U-235, Th-232 and Pu-239 can be used as the
reactor fuel. A certain mass of the fuel is taken in the form of rods,
tightly sealed in aluminium containers. The rods, separated by
moderator, are placed in the core of the reactor.
2. Moderator In the fission of uranium, fast neutrons of energy 2
MeV are released. These fast neutrons have more tendency to escape
instead of triggering another fission reaction. Also, slow neutrons are
more efficient in inducing fission in 92U235 nuclei than fast neutrons.
By the use of a moderator, the fast neutrons are slowed to thermal
velocities. Usually, heavy water, graphite and beryllium oxide are
used as moderators.
3. Control rods To start, stop or control the chain reaction, rods of
neutron absorbing material like cadmium or boron are inserted into
the reactor core. The rate of neutron production is controlled by
adjusting the depth of control rods.
4. Coolant It is the material used to cool the fuel rods and the
moderator and is capable of carrying away large amount of heat
produced in the fission process. The coolant transfers heat to the
working liquid like water and produces steam. The steam drives a
turbine which, in turn, runs a generator to generate electric power.
The coolant must have high boiling point and high specific heat.
Heavy water and liquid sodium are good coolants.
5. Shielding The intense neutrons and gamma radiations produced
in nuclear reactor are harmful for human body. To protect the
workers from these radiations, the reactor core is surrounded by a
thick concrete wall, called the reactor shield.
Working Initially, some neutrons are produced by the action of a-
particles on polonium or beryllium. They are slowed down and are
used to start fission of 92U235 nuclei. Fast neutrons are released in
these fissions which are slowed down to thermal velocities by passing
them through the moderator. These slow neutrons cause fission of
more 92U235 nuclei and thus the chain reaction builds up. By raising
or lowering the control rods, the chain reaction is suitably controlled.
Uses of nuclear reactor :
1. In the preparation of radio-isotopes, which find extensive use in
scientific research, medicine, agriculture and in industry.
2. In the generation of electric power.
3. In the production of fast neutrons which are needed in nuclear
bombardment.
4. In producing fissile material like plutonium which is used in
atomic bombs.

Nuclear fusion The process in which two light nuclei combine (at
extremely high temperature) to form a single heavier nucleus is called
nuclear fusion.
The mass of the heavier nucleus formed is less than the sum of the
masses of the combining nuclei. The mass defect is released as
energy in accordance with Einstein's mass-energy relation E = ∆mc2.
For example, two protons combine to form a deuteron and a positron
with release of 0.42 MeV energy:

1H1 + 1H1→→ 1H2 + e+ + v + 0.42 MeV

The source of energy on sun is nuclear fussion. At sun nuclear
fussion take place in the form of proton proton cycle.

Proton-proton cycle The thermonuclear reactions in a proton-proton

cycle take place in the following sequence:

1H1 + 1H1→→ 1H2 + e+ + v + 0.42 MeV

e+ + e- →→→ γ + γ + 1.02 MeV
1H2 + 1H1 →→→ 2He3 + γ + 5.49 MeV

2He3 + 2He3→→→→ 2He4 + 1H1+ 1H1 + 12.86 MeV

For the fourth reaction to occur, the first three reactions must occur
twice so that two light helium nuclei (He) may combine to form a
normal helium nucleus (He).
Then the net reaction will be
4 (1H1) + 2e- →→→ 2He4 + 2v + 6γ + 26.7 MeV
Thus four protons combine to form one helium nucleus with the
liberation of 26.7 MeV of energy.