Related papers: Nuclear Phenomenology: A Conceptual Proposal for H…
Modern atomic and nuclear physics took its start in the early part of the twentieth century, to a large extent based upon experimental investigations of radioactive phenomena. Foremost among the pioneers of the new kind of physics was…
A complete history of early atomic models would fill volumes, but a reasonably coherent tale of the path from mechanical atoms to the quantum can be told by focusing on the relevant work of three great contributors to atomic physics, in the…
Dawning neutron physics was more complex than one might expect. The chance that the neutron comprised a proton and an electron was diffusely taken into account after the discovery of the neutron. Moreover, uncertainties persisted about the…
(transcript of a talk given by Prof.~Feshbach:) Nuclear physics has been and will be a major factor in science and technology. It makes unique and important contributions to medicine, to industry and to other sciences. Interaction with…
The idea of atoms is old but X-rays provided the first probe into the physical atom. Photographs of X-ray scattering from crystals -Laue spots- were the first visual proof for the physical existence of atoms arranged in a perfect geometric…
In the last decades, a very important breakthrough has been brought in the elementary particle physics by the discovery of the phenomenon of the neutrino oscillations, which has shown neutrino properties beyond the Standard Model. But a…
Atomic nuclei are quantum many-body systems of protons and neutrons held together by strong nuclear forces. Under the proper conditions, nuclei can break into two (sometimes three) fragments which will subsequently decay by emitting…
The scope of this paper is to discuss the major works that appeared in the period of 1904 to 1913: atomic models proposed by Thomson and Hantaro Nagaoka (1904), Rutherford (1911), and Bohr (1913), and the experimental work that motivated…
Naturally occurring nuclear reactors existed in uranium deposits on Earth long before Enrico Fermi built the first man-made nuclear reactor beneath Staggs Field in 1942. In the story of their discovery, there are important lessons to be…
Most physics textbooks at college and university level introduce quantum physics in a historical context. However, the textbook version of this history does not match the actual history. In this article, the first in a series of articles…
A century ago, nuclear physics entered astrophysics, giving birth to a new field of science referred to as "Nuclear Astrophysics". With time, it developed at an impressive pace into a vastly inter- and multidisciplinary discipline bringing…
The Rutherford scattering experiment, conceived by Ernest Rutherford and carried out by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden, provided the first direct evidence of a compact atomic nucleus, fundamentally altering the understanding of atomic…
Since its serendipitous discovery in 1896 by Henry Becquerel, radioactivity has called the attention of both the scientific community and the broad audience due to its intriguing nature, its multiple applications and its controversial uses.…
Atomic electrons are sensitive to the properties of the nucleus they are bound to, such as nuclear mass, charge distribution, spin, magnetization distribution, or even excited level scheme. These nuclear parameters are reflected in the…
In this review we discuss the current status of research in nuclear physics which is being carried out in different centers in the World. For this purpose we supply a short account of the development in the area which evolved over the last…
A chronicle describing the historical context and the development of ideas and experiments leading to the discovery of the back-bending phenomenon in rapidly rotating atomic nuclei some 50 years ago is presented. The moment of inertia of…
"I have dealt with many different transformations with various periods of time, but the quickest that I have met was my own transformation in one moment from a physicist to a chemist." Ernest Rutherford (Nobel Banquet, 1908) This article is…
Elementary particle physics is gradually implemented into science curricula at high school level. However, common presentations on educational, semi-technical or popular level contain or support severe misconceptions. We discuss in…
In the new millennium hypernuclear physics is undergoing a renewed interest, both theoretically and experimentally.
Nuclear physics is a very abstract field with little accessibility for wider audiences, and yet it is a field of physics with far reaching implications for everyday life. The Nuclear Beavers demonstration is a hands-on experience that…