What can neutrons do?

Answer 1

Neutrons are particles in the nucleus of an atom which have slightly more mass to a proton. They contain 0 charge.

They help determine the stability of the atom in which they are bound.

When they are liberated from an atom, as in fission, they bounce about from one atom to another giving off heat and slowing down as they do so. If they hit an atom at just the right energy, they can cause the atom to undergo fission or otherwise decay. They can also be absorbed into atoms, changing their isotopes. When they just bounce, the energy they impart is often enough to cause molecules to break apart. But in general, since they have no charge, they can plow right through atoms without much interaction, and so they can penetrate some substances quite deeply.

Answer 2

Neutrons play a crucial role in nuclear reactions, such as nuclear fission and fusion. They can induce chain reactions in nuclear reactors and are used in neutron scattering techniques to study the structure of materials. Additionally, neutrons are involved in the formation of elements in stellar processes like nucleosynthesis.