The Formula
In the following formulae, let A be the total number of nucleons, Z the number of protons, and N the number of neutrons.
The mass of an atomic nucleus is given by
where and are the rest mass of a proton and a neutron, respectively, and is the binding energy of the nucleus. The semi-empirical mass formula states that the binding energy will take the following form:
Each of the terms in this formula has a theoretical basis, as will be explained below.
Read more about this topic: Semi-empirical Mass Formula
Famous quotes containing the word formula:
“For the myth is the foundation of life; it is the timeless schema, the pious formula into which life flows when it reproduces its traits out of the unconscious.”
—Thomas Mann (1875–1955)
“Ideals possess the strange quality that if they were completely realized they would turn into nonsense. One could easily follow a commandment such as “Thou shalt not kill” to the point of dying of starvation; and I might establish the formula that for the proper functioning of the mesh of our ideals, as in the case of a strainer, the holes are just as important as the mesh.”
—Robert Musil (1880–1942)