Nuclear and Particle Physics

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accelerator - device that uses electromagnets to increase velocity and add energy to moving charged particles; atom smasher
albedo - degree to which surface reflects subatomic particles that strike it
alpha particle - helium nucleus that consists of two protons and two neutrons after it is emitted from radioactive atom’s nucleus
amu - atomic mass unit
antimatter - substance composed of antiparticles
antiparticle - particle that has the same mass and spin as its subatomic counterpart but opposite charge and magnetic moment
antiquark - antiparticle of quark
atom - basic unit of matter, composed of protons, neutrons, and electrons
atomic mass unit - amu; unit of mass for atomic and subatomic particles, equal to 1/12 the mass of most common isotope of carbon, used to express atomic weight; dalton
atomic number - number of protons in nucleus of an atom
atomic theory - explanation of various phenomena by theory of properties and interactions of atoms and subatomic particles
atomic weight - mass of atom expressed in atomic mass units
atom smasher - accelerator
atom-splitting - fission
backscatter - reflection and reversal of direction of radiation by traversed medium
baryon - subatomic particle with large rest mass undergoing strong interactions
beta particle - high-speed electron or positron emitted from radioactive nucleus
binding energy - energy required to separate nucleus into individual nucleons; separation energy
Bohr theory - electrons revolve around nucleus in definite orbits and radiation is absorbed or emitted only when an electron moves from one orbit to another
boson - subatomic particle, such as a photon or pi meson, that does not obey exclusion principle
breeder reactor - nuclear reactor that produces more fissionable material than is consumed
bubble chamber - container of superheated liquid in which paths of ionizing particles appear as strings of vapor bubbles
calutron - early device for separating isotopes by atomic mass
carbon 14 - radioactive isotope of carbon used in radiocarbon dating
cascade particle - least massive of xi particles
chain reaction - self-sustaining series of nuclear reactions, in which products of reaction sustain process
charm - quantum number assigned the value +1 for one kind of quark, -1 for its antiquark, and zero for all other quarks
cloud chamber - closed vessel in which paths of charged subatomic particles appear as trails of liquid droplets
cohesive force - attraction between like particles
cold fusion - hypothetical fusion of atomic nuclei at much lower temperature and pressure than now required
collider - particle accelerator in which positively and negatively charged particles circulate in opposite directions and collide head-on
color - hypothetical force or charge on each type of quark that controls how they combine to form hadrons
Compton effect - increase in X-ray wavelength due to interaction of X-rays and electrons as X-rays traverse matter
control rods - devices in nuclear reactor used to regulate rate of nuclear reaction
core - central part of reactor containing fissile fuel and rods
critical mass - amount of particular fissionable material required to make fission reaction self-sustaining
curie - unit of radioactivity equal to 3.7 x 10¹⁰ disintegrations per second of any radioactive nuclide
cyclotron - device that accelerates positively charged atomic particles by means of D-shaped electrodes, used to initiate nuclear transformations
dalton - atomic mass unit
decay - spontaneous radioactive disintegration in which nucleus undergoes transformation into one or more different nuclei and emits radiation, loses electrons, or undergoes fission
dee - electrode of cyclotron
deuterium - isotope which replaces hydrogen in heavy water
deuteron - charged particle equivalent to nucleus of hydrogen isotope deuterium, consisting of one proton and one neutron
dose - quantity of radiation absorbed by matter
drift tube - tubular electrode placed in vacuum chamber of circular accelerator to accelerate charged subatomic particles
dynamics - study of the motion of particles acted upon by forces
dyne - unit of force that produces acceleration of one centimeter per second per second on mass of one gram
electron cloud - region of high probability of finding an electron
elementary particle - indivisible particle within atomic nucleus
enrichment - process in which number of fissionable nuclei of an element such as uranium is increased
erg - unit equal to work done by force of one dyne acting across one centimeter
excited particle - atom or subatomic particle raised to higher energy state
exclusion principle - no two identical particles in a system can carry the same quantum number
fast neutron - neutron with kinetic energy greater than thermal energy
fermion - subatomic particle, such as a lepton or baryon, that obeys exclusion principle
fission - splitting of heavy nucleus into nuclei of intermediate mass; atom-splitting
fusion - reaction in which nuclei of light atoms combine to form nuclei with larger mass numbers
gamma ray - electromagnetic wave of extremely high frequency emitted by nucleus of radioactive atom; high-energy photon
gas centrifuge - device used to separate enriched, fissionable isotopes of an element from nonfissionable isotopes by centrifugal action
Geiger counter - Geiger-Müller tube
Geiger-Müller tube - device that detects radiation of subatomic particles by use of ionizing property of radiation; Geiger counter
gluon - massless quantum of energy believed to carry force that binds quarks together within subatomic particles
graviton - theoretical subatomic particle, without charge or mass, believed to carry gravitational force between bodies
hadron - any heavy elementary particle that takes part in the strong interaction
half-life - length of time during which one half of a sample of radioactive nuclides decays
heavy hydrogen - hydrogen isotope with mass number greater than one; deuterium or tritium
heavy water - water in which hydrogen atoms are replaced by heavier deuterium isotopes
hodoscope - instrument that traces the paths of high-energy particles
hypercharge - property of some baryons and leptons conserved in strong electromagnetic interactions
hyperon - any baryon which has nonzero strangeness quantum number and relatively long lifetime
inertial confinement - method of producing fusion by laser implosion of deuterium or tritium pellets
interaction - change in quantum numbers of particles in close proximity
isobar - one of two atoms that have equal mass numbers but different atomic numbers
isomer - any of two or more nuclei with same number of neutrons and protons but different energy states
isotone - atom with same number of neutrons as another atom but different atomic number
isotope - any of two or more forms of an atom of some element with nearly identical chemical properties, but containing different number of neutrons and same number of protons, therefore having different mass
isotopic spin - quantum number related to number of different values of electric charge that given baryon or meson may have
kaon - any of four mesons that are positive, negative, or neutral, with mass 970 times that of electron; k meson
k meson - kaon
lambda particle - neutral baryon with strangeness number -1 and isotopic spin zero
lepton - subatomic particle with small rest mass
linear accelerator - device that accelerates charged particles in a straight line through many stages of small potential difference
mass defect - difference in mass between actual atomic nucleus and sum of particles from which nucleus is made
mass number - sum of protons and neutrons in nucleus of atom, being integer nearest to its atomic weight
mass spectroscope - device used to measure the mass of small, electrically charged particles
meltdown - melting of nuclear reactor core due to inadequate cooling of fuel, possibly leading to escape of radiation
meson - any hadron or subatomic particle with rest mass intermediate between lepton and baryon, consisting of a quark and antiquark
moderator - material used to decrease speed of fast neutrons in nuclear reactor
Mössbauer effect - phenomenon in which gamma rays do not lose energy from the recoil of certain radioactive isotope nuclei which are bound in a crystal lattice, resulting in sharply defined wavelength
mu meson - muon
muon - high-speed lepton, either positive or negative, with mass 207 times that of electron, that decays into electron and two neutrinos with very brief life; mu meson
neutrino - chargeless, nearly massless elementary particle affected only by weak force; type of lepton emitted along with beta particles
neutron - uncharged subatomic particle of approximate mass comparable to proton, making up half of the particles in all atomic nuclei except those of hydrogen
nuclear binding energy - energy required to separate an atom into its constituent nucleons
nuclear equation - equation representing a nuclear reaction; strong force equation
nuclear force - very short-range force that holds protons and neutrons together in atomic nucleus; strong force
nuclear moderator - substance used to slow neutrons in reactor
nuclear reactor - device used to obtain energy from controlled fission reaction; reactor
nucleon - proton or neutron in atomic nucleus
nucleus - positively charged, dense core of an atom, containing protons and neutrons
nuclide - any atom of a particular element
omega particle - particle that decays into cascade particle after colliding with pi meson
pair production - creation of electron-positron pair from energy
particle - piece of matter of negligible size that has both charge and mass
photon - massless quantum of electromagnetic radiation or light energy
pile - early term for nuclear reactor
pi meson - meson with mass 270 times that of electron and spin of zero
Planck’s law - light or other waves can be emitted or absorbed only in discrete quanta whose energy is proportional to their frequency
planetary model - model of an atom in which the electrons orbit the nucleus as the planets orbit the sun
positron - positively charged antiparticle of electron
protium - most common hydrogen isotope, with mass number one
proton - positively charged subatomic particle of mass one atomic mass unit that is fundamental constituent of all atomic nuclei
quark - any of basic, hypothetical particles that, along with antiquarks, constitute all elementary particles: designated up, down, strange, charm, beauty or bottom, and truth or top
rad - measured dosage of absorbed ionizing radiation, equal to 100 ergs per gram
radiation - energy emitted as electromagnetic waves, gamma or X-rays, or as energetic nuclear particles
radioactive materials - substances that exhibit phenomenon of radioactivity
radioactivity - spontaneous decay of unstable atomic nucleus with emission of particles and rays
radiocarbon dating - determination of age of artifact based on known rate of decay of carbon-14 isotope
radioelement - radioactive element occurring naturally or produced artificially
radioisotope - radioactive isotope, usu. artificially produced
reactor - nuclear reactor
rem - measured dose of ionizing radiation whose biological effect is equal to that produced by one roentgen of X-rays
rod - control rod in nuclear reactor
roentgen - standard unit that measures ionizing radiation from X-rays or gamma rays
Rutherford atom - atom in which negatively charged electrons revolve around a small, positively charged nucleus that constitutes nearly its entire atomic mass
scintillation - flash of light or charged subatomic particle emitted when substance is struck by radiation
secondary emission - emission of electrons due to bombardment of electrode by high-velocity electrons
separation energy - binding energy
sigma particle - unstable hyperon having strangeness number -1
slow neutron - neutron with less kinetic energy than thermal energy
solid state detector - device used to detect passage of charged subatomic particles by their ionizing or distorting effects on a non- or semi-conducting solid
spark chamber - device used to detect passage of charged subatomic particles by light flashes they trigger
spin - intrinsic angular momentum of each kind of elementary particle that exists even when particle is at rest, as distinguished from orbital angular momentum
strangeness number - quantum number characteristic of a quark or a strongly interacting particle that is conserved in strong interactions with other fundamental particles, assigned a value of +1, -1, or zero
strange quark - quark having strangeness -1 and a charge one-third that of an elementary charge, being more massive than up and down quarks
string - hypothetical basic unit of matter, neither wave nor particle but thin, curved string with length dimension only
string theory - theory of fundamental physics in which basic entity in four dimensions of space-time is one-dimensional object rather than zero-dimensional point of conventional elementary particle physics
strong force - force that holds quarks together with protons and neutrons within atomic nucleus, independent of charge; strongest of four fundamental forces, but with shortest range
strong force equation - nuclear equation
strong interaction - interaction between gluons and between gluons and quarks that is responsible for strong force
strontium 90 - deadly radioactive isotope of strontium present in fallout from nuclear explosions and other fission-produced waste
subatomic particle - one of several constituent parts of atoms: protons, neutrons, electrons, their component particles, and quarks
supercollider - massive, extremely high-speed particle accelerator
superstring theory - fundamental theory of subatomic particles in which all matter and energy are derived from vibration modes of one-dimensional strings that control all forces and matter; combination of string theory and supersymmetry
supersymmetry - hypothetical symmetry among groups of particles containing fermions and bosons, esp. in theory of gravity as single unified force encompassing strong force, weak force, and electromagnetism
synchrotron - particle accelerator with variable oscillating frequency
thermonuclear reaction - nuclear fusion reaction
tracer - radioactive isotope used to follow chemical process or determine physical properties
transmutation - nuclear change of one element into another
transuranic element - any element that has an atomic number greater than 92
tritium - radioactive isotope of hydrogen with atomic weight three, used in thermonuclear devices and as tracer
truth - elusive sixth quark, also designated top, believed to have a mass 90 to 250 times that of proton
virtual particle - particle that cannot be directly detected but whose existence has measurable effects
wave-particle duality - quantum mechanics theory that waves and particles are indistinguishable and sometimes behave alike
weak force - force involved in decay of atomic nuclei and nuclear particles; second weakest of four fundamental forces, with very short range and no effect on force-carrying particles
weak interaction - interaction between elementary particles and the bosons that carry the weak force from particle to particle
weakly interactive massive particle - WIMP; small gravitational mass particle, believed to form cold, dark matter comprising ninety percent of universe
WIMP - weakly interactive massive particle
xi particle - baryon having strangeness number -2 and isotopic spin 12
Z-zero particle - short-lived, very heavy particle, identical to photon except for mass, that conveys part of weak force between neighboring hadrons and leptons