B How is mass converted and released as energy?

  • B
  • Thread starter Thread starter Polaris417
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Energy Mass
Polaris417
Messages
4
Reaction score
0
How is the mass defect from a nuclear reaction created?
Thanks for the help :)
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Something relatively more complex emits photons and becomes relatively simpler / loses mass in the process.
 
Physics cannot answer "how" questions on a fundamental level.
Mass is "just" a type of energy. One type of energy is converted to a different one.

@Grinkle: fusion is a nuclear reaction as well.
 
mfb - good reminder, thanks.
 
mfb said:
Physics cannot answer "how" questions on a fundamental level.
Mass is "just" a type of energy. One type of energy is converted to a different one.

@Grinkle: fusion is a nuclear reaction as well.

Thanks you
 
in regards to mfb's statement about "how" statements:

i thought "why" was the question to shirk away from. i think differentiating "how" from "is" is somewhat semantic. "how" connotes an explanation, whereas "is" is book keeping; so i may venture to say that "how" is epistemological whereas "is" is ontological. but i suppose one may ask "how" ad infinitum just as one can with "why", and there seems to lie the rub.
 
Thread 'Why is there such a difference between the total cross-section data? (simulation vs. experiment)'

Thread 'Why is there such a difference between the total cross-section data? (simulation vs. experiment)'

Well, I'm simulating a neutron-proton scattering phase shift. The equation that I solve numerically is the Phase function method and is $$ \frac{d}{dr}[\delta_{i+1}] = \frac{2\mu}{\hbar^2}\frac{V(r)}{k^2}\sin(kr + \delta_i)$$ ##\delta_i## is the phase shift for triplet and singlet state, ##\mu## is the reduced mass for neutron-proton, ##k=\sqrt{2\mu E_{cm}/\hbar^2}## is the wave number and ##V(r)## is the potential of interaction like Yukawa, Wood-Saxon, Square well potential, etc. I first...
View full post »

Thread 'Toponium Discovered'

Toponium is a hadron which is the bound state of a valance top quark and a valance antitop quark. Oversimplified presentations often state that top quarks don't form hadrons, because they decay to bottom quarks extremely rapidly after they are created, leaving no time to form a hadron. And, the vast majority of the time, this is true. But, the lifetime of a top quark is only an average lifetime. Sometimes it decays faster and sometimes it decays slower. In the highly improbable case that...
View full post »

Thread 'Dirac-Delta from Normalization of Continuous Eigenfunctions'

I'm following this paper by Kitaev on SL(2,R) representations and I'm having a problem in the normalization of the continuous eigenfunctions (eqs. (67)-(70)), which satisfy \langle f_s | f_{s'} \rangle = \int_{0}^{1} \frac{2}{(1-u)^2} f_s(u)^* f_{s'}(u) \, du. \tag{67} The singular contribution of the integral arises at the endpoint u=1 of the integral, and in the limit u \to 1, the function f_s(u) takes on the form f_s(u) \approx a_s (1-u)^{1/2 + i s} + a_s^* (1-u)^{1/2 - i s}. \tag{70}...
View full post »

Similar threads

B Is Comparing Binding Energy and Mass to Kinetic and Potential Energy Valid?
Replies
5
Views
2K
B Released Energy: Is my understanding correct?
Replies
1
Views
2K
I What kind of energy is released in a nuclear fusion reaction?
Replies
14
Views
3K
I Energy released calculation using Binding energy and mass defect
Replies
1
Views
1K
B How energy is released during nuclear fission?
Replies
4
Views
2K
B Difference between binding and bonding energy
Replies
4
Views
6K
B Mechanism for Energy Released via the Strong Force in Fusion
Replies
3
Views
2K
B Mass Defect: Is my understanding correct?
Replies
3
Views
2K
I Q: Binding energy per nucleon & energy released in reaction
Replies
2
Views
10K
I Questions about the energy released by nuclear fission
Replies
4
Views
2K

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top