Common to all matter and its smallest and most fundamental unit, the atom determines the properties of a substance and how it responds to other materials and stimuli. Dividing the atom further reveals several smaller particles whose activity forms the heart of nuclear physics. Readers will discover the structure of the atom as well as the ways in which its electrons, protons, and neutrons facilitate both radioactivity and nuclear reactions, both of which have been crucial to technological advancements since the 20th century.
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motw/The Britannica Guide to the Atom - Erik Gregersen.pdf

edited by Erik Gregersen

Britannica Educational Pub. in association with Rosen Educational Services

Rosen Publishing Group

Physics explained, Physics explained, 1st ed., New York, NY, New York State, 2011

United States, United States of America

Physics explained, New York, NY, ©2010

1, 2011-01-15

1, PT, 2011

Memory of the World Librarian: Quintus

Includes bibliographical references (p. 305-313) and index.
Description based on print version record.

Rosen Educational Services 2011
TITLE 4
COPYRIGHT 5
CONTENTS 6
INTRODUCTION 13
CHAPTER 1 THE ATOM: DEVELOPMENT OF ATOMIC THEORY 22
WHAT IS AN ATOM? 22
THE ATOMIC PHILOSOPHY OF THE EARLY GREEKS 23
THE EMERGENCE OF EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE 25
EXPERIMENTAL FOUNDATION OF ATOMIC CHEMISTRY 27
ATOMIC WEIGHTS AND THE PERIODIC TABLE 31
KINETIC THEORY OF GASES 33
STUDIES OF THE PROPERTIES OF ATOMS 36
SIZE OF ATOMS 36
ELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF ATOMS 38
LIGHT AND SPECTRAL LINES 39
DISCOVERY OF ELECTRONS 42
MILLIKAN OIL-DROP EXPERIMENT 44
IDENTIFICATION OF POSITIVE IONS 46
DISCOVERY OF RADIOACTIVITY 47
MODELS OF ATOMIC STRUCTURE 50
RUTHERFORD’S NUCLEAR MODEL 51
MOSELEY’S X-RAY STUDIES 54
BOHR’S SHELL MODEL 55
THE LAWS OF QUANTUM MECHANICS 62
SCHRÖDINGER’S WAVE EQUATION 64
ANTIPARTICLES AND THE ELECTRON’S SPIN 66
ADVANCES IN NUCLEAR AND SUBATOMIC PHYSICS 67
STRUCTURE OF THE NUCLEUS 67
QUANTUM FIELD THEORY AND THE STANDARD MODEL 69
CHAPTER 2 THE ATOM: COMPONENTS AND PROPERTIES 72
ATOMIC NUMBER 73
ATOMIC MASS AND ISOTOPES 73
THE ELECTRON 74
CHARGE, MASS, AND SPIN 74
ORBITS AND ENERGY LEVELS 76
ELECTRON SHELLS 78
ATOMIC BONDS 80
CONDUCTORS AND INSULATORS 84
MAGNETIC PROPERTIES 85
THE NUCLEUS 86
NUCLEAR FORCES 87
NUCLEAR SHELL MODEL 87
RADIOACTIVE DECAY 89
NUCLEAR ENERGY 91
CHAPTER 3 ISOTOPES 93
THE DISCOVERY OF ISOTOPES 94
NUCLEAR STABILITY 97
RADIOACTIVE ISOTOPES 100
ELEMENTAL AND ISOTOPIC ABUNDANCES 101
VARIATIONS IN ISOTOPIC ABUNDANCES 105
RADIOACTIVE DECAY 106
MASS FRACTIONATION 106
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES ASSOCIATED WITH ISOTOPES 108
EFFECT OF ISOTOPES ON ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR SPECTRA 110
MOLECULAR VIBRATIONS 112
IMPORTANCE IN THE STUDY OF POLYATOMIC MOLECULES 113
CHEMICAL EFFECTS OF ISOTOPIC SUBSTITUTION 114
EFFECT OF ISOTOPIC SUBSTITUTION ON REACTION RATES 116
ISOTOPE SEPARATION AND ENRICHMENT 118
MASS SPECTROMETRY 118
DISTILLATION 119
CHEMICAL EXCHANGE REACTIONS 120
GASEOUS DIFFUSION 120
GAS CENTRIFUGATION 121
PHOTOCHEMICAL ENRICHMENT METHODS 122
CHAPTER 4 RADIOACTIVITY 124
THE NATURE OF RADIOACTIVE EMISSIONS 124
TYPES OF RADIOACTIVITY 125
ALPHA DECAY 125
BETA-MINUS DECAY 126
GAMMA DECAY 127
ISOMERIC TRANSITIONS 127
BETA-PLUS DECAY 128
ELECTRON CAPTURE 128
SPONTANEOUS FISSION 130
PROTON RADIOACTIVITY 131
SPECIAL BETA-DECAY PROCESSES 131
HEAVY-ION RADIOACTIVITY 132
OCCURRENCE OF RADIOACTIVITY 133
ENERGETICS AND KINETICS OF RADIOACTIVITY 136
ENERGY RELEASE IN RADIOACTIVE TRANSITIONS 136
CALCULATION AND MEASUREMENT OF ENERGY 137
ABSOLUTE NUCLEAR BINDING ENERGY 140
NUCLEAR MODELS 141
THE LIQUID-DROP MODEL 141
THE SHELL MODEL 143
THE COLLECTIVE MODEL 145
RATES OF RADIOACTIVE TRANSITIONS 146
EXPONENTIAL-DECAY LAW 147
MEASUREMENT OF HALF-LIFE 149
APPLICATIONS OF RADIOACTIVITY 162
MEDICINAL 162
INDUSTRIAL 163
SCIENTIFIC 164
CHAPTER 5 RADIATION AND LIFE 165
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 165
UNITS FOR MEASURING IONIZING RADIATION 168
SOURCES AND LEVELS OF RADIATION IN THE ENVIRONMENT 169
NATURAL SOURCES 172
ARTIFICIAL SOURCES 172
MECHANISM OF BIOLOGIC ACTION 175
RADIONUCLIDES AND RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT 177
ACCUMULATION IN CRITICAL ORGANS 178
THE HAZARDS OF LONG-LIVED RADIOISOTOPES 180
MAJOR TYPES OF RADIATION INJURY 182
EFFECTS ON THE CELL 183
EFFECTS ON ORGANS OF THE BODY (SOMATIC EFFECTS) 189
EFFECTS ON THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE EMBRYO 195
EFFECTS ON THE INCIDENCE OF CANCER 196
PROTECTION AGAINST EXTERNAL RADIATION 200
CONTROL OF RADIATION RISKS 202
CHAPTER 6 NUCLEAR FISSION 205
HISTORY OF FISSION RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY 206
FUNDAMENTALS OF THE FISSION PROCESS 209
STRUCTURE AND STABILITY OF NUCLEAR MATTER 209
INDUCED FISSION 212
SPONTANEOUS FISSION 213
THE PHENOMENOLOGY OF FISSION 214
FISSION FRAGMENT MASS DISTRIBUTIONS 216
FISSION DECAY CHAINS AND CHARGE DISTRIBUTION 218
PROMPT NEUTRONS IN FISSION 220
DELAYED NEUTRONS IN FISSION 221
ENERGY RELEASE IN FISSION 222
FISSION THEORY 223
NUCLEAR MODELS AND NUCLEAR FISSION 225
FISSION CHAIN REACTIONS AND THEIR CONTROL 235
USES OF FISSION REACTORS AND FISSION PRODUCTS 237
CHAPTER 7 NUCLEAR FUSION 238
THE FUSION REACTION 238
TWO TYPES OF FUSION REACTIONS 239
ENERGY RELEASED IN FUSION REACTIONS 241
RATE AND YIELD OF FUSION REACTIONS 242
THE PLASMA STATE 244
FUSION REACTIONS IN STARS 246
FUSION REACTIONS FOR CONTROLLED POWER GENERATION 248
METHODS OF ACHIEVING FUSION ENERGY 249
MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT 249
INERTIAL CONFINEMENT FUSION (ICF) 252
MUON-CATALYZED FUSION 254
COLD FUSION AND BUBBLE FUSION 255
CONDITIONS FOR PRACTICAL FUSION YIELD 256
HISTORY OF FUSION ENERGY RESEARCH 258
CONCLUSION 260
CHAPTER 8 BIOGRAPHIES 263
CLASSICAL WORLD: PHILOSOPHERS 263
DEMOCRITUS 263
LEUCIPPUS 266
18TH AND 19TH CENTURIES: BEGINNINGS OF ATOMIC THEORY 266
AMEDEO AVOGADRO 267
JOHANN JAKOB BALMER 270
JÖNS JACOB BERZELIUS 271
ROBERT BROWN 274
ROBERT WILHELM BUNSEN 276
STANISLAO CANNIZZARO 278
JOHN DALTON 281
JOSEPH LOSCHMIDT 285
DMITRY IVANOVICH MENDELEYEV 286
LOTHAR MEYER 289
JEAN PERRIN 290
JOSEPH-LOUIS PROUST 291
JOHANNES ROBERT RYDBERG 295
20TH CENTURY: RADIATION AND AFTER 295
HENRI BECQUEREL 296
MARIE CURIE 299
PIERRE CURIE 304
OTTO HAHN 307
LISE MEITNER 310
HENRY GWYN JEFFREYS MOSELEY 310
WILHELM RÖNTGEN 311
ERNEST RUTHERFORD 312
FREDERICK SODDY 316
FRITZ STRASSMANN 317
SIR J.J. THOMSON 318
GLOSSARY 322
BIBLIOGRAPHY 326
GENERAL HISTORY 326
ATOMIC COMPONENTS AND PROPERTIES 326
ISOTOPE 327
RADIOACTIVITY 327
NUCLEAR FISSION 328
NUCLEAR FUSION 329
RADIATION 330
INDEX 335
1615303197,9781615303199

2025-10-27