The isotopic mass of is

PHYSICS · Subjective · A Level · Physics · Nuclear physics · Nuclear physics

Problem

The isotopic mass of

^{40}_{18}\text{Ar}

39.962\,384\,u

. The masses of a proton and a neutron are

1.007\,276\,u

and

1.008\,665\,u

respectively. (a) Calculate the mass defect of an

^{40}_{18}\text{Ar}

nucleus. (b) Hence find its total binding energy. (c) Determine the binding energy per nucleon and state whether

^{40}_{18}\text{Ar}

is more or less stable than

^{12}_6\text{C}

whose binding energy per nucleon is

7.7\,\text{MeV}

. (Given:

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

)