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Fusillade
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I'm trying to clarify the terms "nuclear effect" and "atomic effect".
Due to the synonymous use of nuclear and atomic in the English language, the two are often viewed as being the same (as they were when I was in school); however during my current research, I learned that there is a difference such that atomic physics deals with the study of the atom including its nucleus and electrons and nuclear physics deals with the study of only the atomic nuclei.
As a result, can I use those definitions to determine if something is classified as a nuclear effect or an atomic effect?
For instance, is the emission of an alpha particle a nuclear effect or an atomic effect? The emission occurs at the nucleus but wouldn't you need to view the element as a whole to fully understand the effects?
Due to the synonymous use of nuclear and atomic in the English language, the two are often viewed as being the same (as they were when I was in school); however during my current research, I learned that there is a difference such that atomic physics deals with the study of the atom including its nucleus and electrons and nuclear physics deals with the study of only the atomic nuclei.
As a result, can I use those definitions to determine if something is classified as a nuclear effect or an atomic effect?
For instance, is the emission of an alpha particle a nuclear effect or an atomic effect? The emission occurs at the nucleus but wouldn't you need to view the element as a whole to fully understand the effects?