Odd vs. Even number of Nucleons.

[WatermelonPig]

Yeah I'm taking this introductory nuclear science class, we're reading Rhodes's Making of the Atomic Bomb. Apparently, U235 with a neutron added now has an even number of nucleons while U238 obviously has an odd number with the single neutron bombarment. And this affects fission likelihood. So, why is this?

 

[minerva]

There's an older thread here which you might find valuable on the role of parity in nuclear binding and stability.

https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=290735

Yeah I'm taking this introductory nuclear science class, we're reading Rhodes's Making of the Atomic Bomb

I must say, I think that's a very good choice of literature for an "introductory nuclear science" class. :)

PS: Apparently some people don't like thread necromancy, but personally, if it's < 1 a and I'm contributing helpful content to the people who haven't gotten any reply previously, then why not?

 

[WatermelonPig]

Thank yo for this response. The explanation seems very much like the reasons for electron orbital pairings. Apparently there is some differential equation which when solved shows this explicitly. And yeah that was a great class and I'm looking forward towards taking my first nuclear engineering class this fall.