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Gamma rays and nuclear fission

I understood that gamma rays are the product of energy changes of particles within a nucleus, much like light photons get emitted by electrons changing orbits.

My question is what happens in a fission reaction that actually converts mass into energy? Are gamma rays still the result of internal nuclear rearrangements of the fission products, or are they actually fission products themselves, directly created from mass annihilation?

Narbadingi Fri 11/07/08 15:50

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jake-the-peg
Fri 11/07/08
17:17

Generally after a fission one or more of the products are in an excited state and it is the dropping to a base state that generates the gamma ray.

A nucleus is held together by the strong nuclear force and in unstable nucleii there is the possibility that this can be overcome and the nucleus can split.

Think of water molecules there is the possibility that one can gain enough energy to break free of the other water molecules and evaporate.

Because the binding energy of heavy nucleii is greater than the sum the binding energy of the resultant daughter nucleii there is energy left over during fision.

This energy was captured during the creation of the heavy nucleus in a supernova.

A radioactive decay is the faint spark of a cataclysimc explosion billions of years ago

abstract
Fri 11/07/08
17:23

watch out with those gamma rays mate,i heard that some doctor got exposed to them and now cannot keep his anger at bay! he also turns green&muscley! i think his name was doctor david bruce banner or something...................

Narbadingi
Thurs 17/07/08
18:12

Question Author

Ta muchly lots.

Soooo....

...mass isn't actually lost in fission then? It's only the release of binding energy from the daughter product nuclei that results in the mushroom cloud?

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