Fusion in the Sun: Neutrons or Neutrinos – What is Produced?

[spideyinspace]

does the fusion reaction in sun produce neutrons or neutrinos? i read websites of which one is saying neutron is produced but the other one says neutrino is produced..which one is correct..what other things would be produced when hydrogen fuses to produce helium in the core of sun?

 

[cristo]

Firstly, this isn't cosmology! Secondly, in answer to your question, I'd say both are produced. Perhaps http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~soper/Light/fusion.html link will help you.

 

[spideyinspace]

Firstly, this isn't cosmology! Secondly, in answer to your question, I'd say both are produced. Perhaps http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~soper/Light/fusion.html link will help you.

i thought this would be the right place to post my doubt,if its wrong,then sorry...the link which u gave says neutrinos are produced but u said both are produced..

 

[cristo]

i thought this would be the right place to post my doubt,if its wrong,then sorry...the link which u gave says neutrinos are produced but u said both are produced..

Well, yes, but Helium contains neutrons, doesn't it?

 

[spideyinspace]

Well, yes, but Helium contains neutrons, doesn't it?

what i mean is, which one is emitted from sun,neutrinos or neutrons?

 

[Wallace]

Neutrinos are emitted from the Sun in large quantities. However there are many many different nuclear processes occurring in the Sun and I would think that at least some of these also lead to neutrons coming from the Sun, though I have no idea of the flux of them (if there is any at all).

Isolated Neutrons are unstable however, and therefore would likely decay before they get very far. Therefore I wouldn't think that there would be an appreciable amount of Neutrons emitted from the Sun that reach the Earth.

 

[Astronuc]

Because the density of hyrogen in the sun is much like that of water, few neutrons would likely escape the sun. If they didn't decay (half-life ~ 10.23 min) they are readily absorbed by protons form deuterons, and deuterons are part of the pp-chain, and p + d => He3. Since free neutrons would readily decay, if there was a large quantity leaving the sun, the we'd measure a flux of anti-neutrinos from the beta decay.