Energy needed to convert a bound proton to a neutron?

[Aakash Sunkari]

TL;DR Summary

How does one go about calculating the energy a particle needs such that in a collision with a bound proton, the proton is converted to a neutron?

Hey everyone,

I've got a question on converting bound protons into neutrons.

a. What are some methods used to achieve the proton-to-neutron conversion in atomic nuclei?
I'm familiar with particle scattering off a proton in the nucleus. I'm also aware of (n,p) reactions. Are there any other methods to either convert a proton to a neutron in a nucleus, or any other methods of replacing a proton with a neutron?
Note that I don't mean natural processes such at beta-plus decay.

b. How does one calculate (in the scattering scenario) the amount of energy a particle needs in order to convert a bound proton to a neutron?
Specifically, I am looking at electron-proton collisions in a completely ionized 48Ti isotope:

How would one calculate the amount of energy the electron needs to create that proton-to-neutron conversion in the nucleus?

Thank you all in advance!

 

[mfb]

Look at the total energy afterwards. The total energy before must match or exceed that. You'll need the mass of the initial and final nucleus (not the atom) in this case.