Matter Waves

- In 1924 the French physicist Louis de Brogile (1892-1987) extended the wave-particle
duality. De Brogile proposed that all forms of matter may have both wave properties and
particle properties
- 3 years after de Brogile’s proposal, C.J. Davisson and LH.Germer, of the U.S.,
discovered that the electrons can be diffracted by a single crystal of nickel. This
important discovery provided the first experimental confirmation of de Brogile’s theory
- The wavelength of a photon is equal to Planck’s constant (h) divided by the photon’s
momentum (p). De Brogile speculated that this relationship might also hold for matter
waves, as follows:
- De broglie wavelength = planck's constant / momentum
- ‫ = ג‬h / p = h/mv
- The larger the momentum of an object, the smaller its wavelength
- De Brogile postulated that the frequency of a matter wave can be found with Planck’s
equation : f = E/h
- Dual nature of matter suggested by de Brogile is quite apparent in the wavelength and
frequency equations, both of which contain particle concepts (E and mv) and wave
concepts (‫ ג‬and f)
- De Broglie saw a connection between his theory of matter waves and the stable orbits
in the Bohr model
- He assumed that an electron orbit would be stable only if it contained an integral
(whole) number of electron wavelengths
Uncertainty Principle
- In 1927, Werner Heisenberg argues that it is fundamentally impossible to make
simultaneous measurements of a particle’s position and momentum with infinite
accuracy
The Electron Cloud
- Quantum mechanics also predicts that the electron can be found in a spherical region
surrounding the nucleus
- This result is often interpreted by viewing the electron as a cloud surrounding the
nucleus
- Analysis of each of the energy levels of hydrogen reveals that the most probable
electron location in each case is in agreement with each of the radii predicted by the
Bohr model
- Because the electron's location cannot be precisely determined, it is useful to discuss
the probability of finding the electron at different locations
Chapter 22: Section 1 : The nucleus

Properties of the Nucleus

- Nuclear quantities
- Mass number (A) represents the total number of protons and neutrons - or
nucleons- in nucleus
- Atomic number (Z) represents number of protons in nucleus
- Neutron number (N) represents the number of neutrons in the nucleus
- Isotopes
- Although atomic number does not change within an element, atoms of the same
element can have different mass numbers. This is because the number of
neutrons in a particular element can vary
- Atoms that have the same atomic number but different neutron numbers (and
thus different mass numbers) are called isotopes
- Unified mass unit
- Because the mass of the nucleus is extremely small, the unified mass unit, u, is
often used for atomic masses. This unit is sometimes referred to as the atomic
mass unit
- 1 u is defined so that 12 u is equal to the mass of one atom of carbon - 12
- The proton and neutron each have a mass of about 1 u
- Rest Energy
- A particle has a certain amount of energy, called rest energy, associated with its
mass
- E r= mc^2
- Nuclear stability
- There must be an attractive force to overcome the Coulomb repulsion between
protons in the nucleus
- This force is called the strong force
- Strong force is almost completely independent of electric charge. For a
given separation, the force of attraction between 2 protons, 2 neutrons, or
a proton and a neutron has the same magnitude
- Another unusual property of the strong force is its very short range, only
about 10^-15m
- Heavy nuclei are stable only when they have more neutrons than protons
- This can be understood in terms of the strong force
- For a nucleus to be stable. The repulsion between positively-charged
protons must be balanced by the strong nuclear force’s attraction
between all the particles in the nucleus
- Heavy nuclei are stable only when they have more neutrons than protons
- This can be understood in terms of strong force
- For Z greater than 83, the repulsive forces b/w protons cannot be compensated
by the addition of more neutrons
- That is elements that contain more than 83 protons do not have stable nuclei
- Binding energy:
- A stable nucleus’ mass is less than the masses of its nucleons. The mass of the
nucleons when unbound minus mass of nucleons when bound is called the mass
defect
- The binding energy is the energy released when unbound nucleons come
together to form a stable nucleus, which is equivalent to the energy required to
break the nucleus into individual nucleons
- E bind = delta mc^2
- Nuclear decay modes
 - Nuclear decay process can be a natural event or can be induced artificially. In
either case, when a nucleus decays, radiation is emitted in the form of particles,
photons, or both
- The nucleus before decay is called the parent nucleus, and the nucleus
remaining after decay is called the daughter nucleus
- In all nuclear reactions, the energy released is found by equation E = mc^2
- 3 types of radiation can be emitted by a nucleus as it undergoes radioactive
decay:
- Alpha particles : which are 4 2 He nuclei
- Beta particles which are either electrons or positrons (positively charged
particles w a mass equal to that of the electron)
- Gamma rays which are high-energy photons
- 2 rules can be determined unknown daughter atom when a parent atom
undergoes decay:
- Total of atomic numbers on left is same as total on right because charge
must be conserved
- Total of mass numbers on left is same as total on right b/c nucleon
number must be conserved
- Beta decay transforms neutrons & protons in nucleus
- In beta decay, an electron is always accompanied by an antineutrino & a positron
- If product of a nuclear decay is stable, the decay process ends
- Decay product, the daughter product, is itself unstable. Daughter nucleus then
becomes parent nucleus for an additional decay process
- Such a sequence is called a decay series
- Fission
- Any process that involves a change in nucleus is called fission
- Because fission produces lighter nuclei, the binding energy per nucleon must
increase with decreasing atomic number
- Fission occurs naturally for only heavy atoms
- Energy released in a fission event is very large relative to the energy released in
typical chemical reactions
- For example, the energy released in burning one molecule of the octane used in
gasoline engines is about one hundred-millionth the energy released in a single
fission event
- An estimate for energy released in a typical fission process is as follows
- Binding energy per nucleon is about 7.6 MeV for heavy nuclei
- Neutrons released in a fission event can be captured by other nuclei, making
these nuclei unstable
- This triggers additional fission events, which leads to possibility of a chain
reaction
- If the chain reaction does not proceed slowly, it could result in release of an
enormous amount of energy and a violent explosion
- A nuclear reactor is a system designed to maintain a controlled, self-sustained
chain reaction
 - Fusion
- Nuclear fusion occurs when 2 light nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus
- As with fission, the product of a fusion event must have a greater binding energy
than the original nuclei for energy to be released in the reaction
- b/c fusion reactions produce heavier nuclei Binding energy per nucleon must
increase as atomic number increases.
- All stars generate energy through fusion
- Efforts are under way to create conttrolled thermonuclear reactions in the form of
a fusion reactor
- There are several advantages to nucleur fusion:
- Fuel costs are insignificant
- Few radiactive byproducts are formed
- However high temp required are difficult and expensive to obtain in a lab or
power plant

Equations:

Final: Project - tinkercad

Catapult: (group 4)
- Projectile motion
- force/impulse
- Torque

Tissue box catapult materials needed:

Materials:
- box/tissue box
- Pencil
- Rubber band/ string
- Painting tape
- Target
- Bottle cap
- Popsicle stick