Can atoms pass through each other when vibrated at high speeds?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the behavior of atoms when subjected to high-speed vibrations, particularly whether one object can pass through another under such conditions. It includes questions about the nature of protons, neutrons, and electrons, their interactions, and the forces that hold atomic structures together.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions how protons and neutrons stay together despite their differing charges, suggesting a lack of understanding of the forces involved.
  • Another participant introduces the strong nuclear force as the mechanism that holds protons and neutrons together.
  • There is a query about the possibility of binding a proton back to a nucleus once it has been separated, with a suggestion that artificial methods exist for creating nuclei.
  • Participants discuss the composition of protons and neutrons, with one asserting that they are made of quarks, which are considered fundamental particles.
  • Questions arise regarding whether protons, neutrons, and electrons possess mass independently or only as part of an atom, with a participant affirming that they have mass by themselves.
  • There is curiosity about the fate of protons, neutrons, and electrons after an atom is split, with a response indicating they typically end up being captured by other atoms or ions.
  • A hypothetical scenario is presented about two objects vibrating and whether one could pass through the other, with responses indicating that the outcome depends on the nature of the objects and the energies involved.
  • One participant mentions that similar phenomena occur in certain materials through techniques like Ultrasonic Welding, where vibrations can cause atomic bonds to break and allow materials to flow into each other.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various viewpoints on the questions raised, with no clear consensus on the hypothetical scenario of atoms passing through each other. Some agree on the principles of atomic structure and forces, while others present differing interpretations of the implications of high-speed vibrations.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes assumptions about atomic interactions and the conditions under which certain phenomena occur, which may not be fully explored or defined.

MrPickle
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Several questions they may not be all answerable but hey :D

How do proton and neutrons stay together? If one's got a positive charge and one's got a neutral charge there's nothing holding them together?

Once a proton is split from a neutron and/or it's nucleus would you be able to bind them back together? Could you fit a proton onto another nucleus although that would probably make it unstable.

What are protons, neutrons and electrons made of? Don't tell me there's smaller building blocks because then what makes them? or does that chain continue infinitly.

Do protons, neutrons and electrons have mass or do they only gain mass as an atom?

Once an atom is split, where do the protons, neutrons and electrons go? do they wizz off somewhere until they lose all their energy then do they stop moving and just sit there?

This question may seem a bit stupid but it'd still be cool if this would happen.
For easiness I'm going to label 2 objects, object A and object B.
Object A is being pushed down onto Object B whilst being vibrated very fast would Object A start to pass through Object B as the atoms in Object A find gaps in Object B and go down the gaps? or would the bonds prevent this?
 
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MrPickle said:
Several questions they may not be all answerable but hey :D

How do proton and neutrons stay together? If one's got a positive charge and one's got a neutral charge there's nothing holding them together?

Strong nuclear force

MrPickle said:
Once a proton is split from a neutron and/or it's nucleus would you be able to bind them back together? Could you fit a proton onto another nucleus although that would probably make it unstable.

One can make nuclei on an artificial way yes

MrPickle said:
What are protons, neutrons and electrons made of? Don't tell me there's smaller building blocks because then what makes them? or does that chain continue infinitly.

You first ask a question what they are made of, then you don't want to hear the answer??\

The proton and neutron are made up of quarks, the quarks - in their turn - is thought as beeing fundamental particles, i.e not made up by anything else than by themselves. But that is what physics today tells us, science is an ongoing process.

MrPickle said:
Do protons, neutrons and electrons have mass or do they only gain mass as an atom?

Yes they have mass by themselves, and this answer you could just use google to find it..

MrPickle said:
Once an atom is split, where do the protons, neutrons and electrons go? do they wizz off somewhere until they lose all their energy then do they stop moving and just sit there?

They are usally end up beeing caught by some other atom/ion or nuclei.

MrPickle said:
This question may seem a bit stupid but it'd still be cool if this would happen.
For easiness I'm going to label 2 objects, object A and object B.
Object A is being pushed down onto Object B whilst being vibrated very fast would Object A start to pass through Object B as the atoms in Object A find gaps in Object B and go down the gaps? or would the bonds prevent this?

It depends on what A and B are, what energies you are discussing and so on.
 
MrPickle said:
This question may seem a bit stupid but it'd still be cool if this would happen.
For easiness I'm going to label 2 objects, object A and object B.
Object A is being pushed down onto Object B whilst being vibrated very fast would Object A start to pass through Object B as the atoms in Object A find gaps in Object B and go down the gaps? or would the bonds prevent this?
Something similar to this does indeed happen in certain materials, but probably not the way in which you imagine it. Look up a technique known as Ultrasonic Welding, where applied ultrasonic vibrations break the bonds locally near the interface between the two objects, causing them to essentially melt and flow into each other. Without the applied vibrations, it is still possible to achieve what is known as a Cold Weld (especially at elevated temperatures - and a higher temperature is really just faster vibrating atoms), through the process of solid state diffusion, but here too, interatomic bonds must be broken and reformed as atoms of A and B migrate past each other. There is no way to achieve what you describe without breaking the A-A and B-B bonds.
 
Thanks for answering them, for the resource and for the explanation on Ultrasonic Welding. Gonna go look it up :)
 

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