Two light nuclei are given: and

PHYSICS · Multi-part · AP · Physics 2: Algebra-based · Modern Physics · Modern Physics

Problem

Two light nuclei are given:

^{7}\!\mathrm{Li}

and

^{4}\!\mathrm{He}

. The following nuclear masses are provided:

m(^{7}\!\mathrm{Li}) = 7.016004\,\text{u}

m(^{4}\!\mathrm{He}) = 4.001506\,\text{u}

;

m_p = 1.007276\,\text{u}

m_n = 1.008665\,\text{u}

;

1\,\text{u} = 931.5\,\text{MeV}\,c^{\!-2}

. (i) Calculate the binding energy per nucleon for each nucleus. (ii) Find the percentage difference in binding energy per nucleon between the two nuclei, taking

^{4}\!\mathrm{He}

as the reference. (iii) Which of the two nuclei is more stable? Support your answer with the computed values.

Related theory

Nuclear Binding Energy
Mass defect and binding energy
Nuclear physics
Nuclei

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