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Modern Physics · Part 4 of 4
6 exam-style questions with model answers, plus 8 quick multi-choice questions — every question on this part of the standard, grouped by the 2 pages of notes they come from.
Write a full answer before you reveal the model one. That comparison is where the learning happens.
State one similarity and two differences between the strong interaction and the Coulombic repulsion inside a nucleus.
Explain why stable heavy nuclei contain considerably more neutrons than protons, while stable light nuclei contain roughly equal numbers.
Explain how the competition between the strong interaction and Coulombic repulsion accounts for the shape of the binding energy per nucleon curve, and hence for the fact that both fission and fusion can release energy.
State the quark composition of a proton and of a neutron, and show that each gives the correct total charge.
Explain what happens to the quarks inside a neutron during beta-minus decay, and explain how electric charge is conserved.
Explain how the quark model connects to the strong interaction and to nuclear stability, and discuss why quarks are never observed in isolation.