Question:
A Nuclear Reaction Fission, the process that supplies energy in nuclear power plants, occurs when a heavy nucleus is split into two medium-sized nuclei. One such reaction occurs when a neutron colliding with a 235U (uranium) nucleus splits that nucleus into a 141Ba (barium) nucleus and a 92Kr (krypton) nucleus. In this reaction, two neutrons also are split off from the original 235U. Before the collision, the arrangement is as shown in Fig. 8.49a. After the collision, the I4IBa nucleus is moving in the +z-direction and the 92Kr nucleus in the - z-direction. The three neutrons are moving in the xy-plane, as shown in Fig. 8.49b. If the incoming neutron has an initial velocity of magnitude 3.0 X 103 m/s and a final velocity of magnitude 2.0 X 103 m/s in the directions shown, what are the speeds of the other two neutrons, and what can you say about the speeds of the I4IBa and 92Kr nuclei? (The mass of the I4IBa nucleus is approximately 2.3 X 10-25 kg, and the mass of 92Kr is about 1.5 X 10-25 kg.)
Transcribed Image Text:
Emitted neutron Original 35 neutron Uo 10° 30° Neutron Nucleus at rest Emitted neutron