An alpha particle (24He^{4}_{2}\text{He}24He) is directed towards a stationary gold-197 (79197Au^{197}_{79}\text{Au}79197Au) nucleus in a nuclear scattering experiment.
State the fundamental force responsible for the scattering of the alpha particle by the gold nucleus.
The alpha particle has a charge of +2e+2e+2e and a mass of 6.64×10−27 kg6.64 \times 10^{-27}\text{ kg}6.64×10−27 kg. In a head-on collision, it comes to rest at a distance of closest approach of 3.8×10−14 m3.8 \times 10^{-14}\text{ m}3.8×10−14 m from the centre of the gold-197 nucleus. Calculate the initial speed of the alpha particle when it is at an infinite distance from the target. Ignore relativistic effects. Use ε0=8.85×10−12 F m−1\varepsilon_0 = 8.85 \times 10^{-12}\text{ F m}^{-1}ε0=8.85×10−12 F m−1 and e=1.60×10−19 Ce = 1.60 \times 10^{-19}\text{ C}e=1.60×10−19 C.
The nuclear radius of 79197Au^{197}_{79}\text{Au}79197Au is 7.0×10−15 m7.0 \times 10^{-15}\text{ m}7.0×10−15 m. Calculate the nuclear radius of oxygen-16 (816O^{16}_{8}\text{O}816O).
The density of nuclear matter is approximately constant across all elements in the periodic table. State one physical property of nucleons that can be inferred from this observation.
128 exam-style questions on AQA A Level Physics Radioactivity (A-level only), covering Rutherford scattering (A-level only), $\alpha$ , $\beta$ and $\gamma$ radiation (A-level only), Radioactive decay (A-level only), Nuclear instability (A-level only), Nuclear radius (A-level only), Mass and energy (A-level only), Induced fission (A-level only), and Safety aspects (A-level only). Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.