When a target is bombarded with a proton

PHYSICS · Multi-part · A Level · Physics · Nuclear physics · Nuclear physics

Problem

When a

^{7}_{3}\mathrm{Li}

target is bombarded with a proton, two alpha particles are produced.

^{7}_{3}\mathrm{Li}+^{1}_{1}\mathrm{H}\;\longrightarrow\;2\,^{4}_{2}\mathrm{He}+Q

Atomic masses (in u):

^{7}_{3}\mathrm{Li}:\;7.016004

^{1}_{1}\mathrm{H}:\;1.007825

^{4}_{2}\mathrm{He}:\;4.002603

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

(a) Show that the given reaction is balanced with respect to both nucleon number and charge. (b) Calculate the

Q

-value of the reaction in

\text{MeV}

using the masses provided. (c) Determine the increase in binding-energy per nucleon produced by the reaction.