What is the meaning of nuclear change?

Answer 1

Nuclear change means a change in the nucleus of an atom. These changes come in different "flavors" and if we look at them, we might be able to see what's happening. In the fundamental change involving an energetic (excited) nucleus, a gamma ray can be emitted to couple the nucleus to a ground state. The atomic nucleus changes its energy state (but remains the same atom). Let's wander along and look at actual changes in the nucleus that result in transmutation, which is the changing of one element into another. Unstable atomic nuclei will undergo nuclear decay. In beta decay, a type of radioactive decay, one of two things happens. In one kind, a proton in converted into a neutron and the atomic number of the nucleus goes down by one. In the other kind, a neutron becomes a proton, and atomic number goes up by one. In alpha decay, an unstable nucleus emits an alpha particle, which is a helium-4 nucleus with a pair of protons and a pair of neutrons in it. Atomic number goes down by two in this case. In spontaneous fission, an unstable nucleus of an heavy element simply "breaks apart" into two large chunks, or fission fragments. Neutrons are also released in this process, and the two fission fragments are the atomic nuclei of two different atoms. Details have been left out of this description, but can be found by looking at the individual types of radioactive decay. Links to those questions can be found below.

Answer 2

Nuclear change refers to the process of altering the structure or composition of atomic nuclei through processes such as nuclear fission, fusion, or radioactive decay. These changes can result in the release of energy and the transformation of elements.