Alpha Definition and 475 Threads

Alpha (uppercase Α, lowercase α; Ancient Greek: ἄλφα, álpha, modern pronunciation álfa) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of one. Alpha is derived from the Phoenician letter aleph , which is the West Semitic word for "ox". Letters that arose from alpha include the Latin letter A and the Cyrillic letter А.

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  1. S

    Question about Rutherford experiment: Which of these could not be concluded?

    I don't think there is correct answer for this question. This is my reasoning: A) This is correct since most of alpha particles move in straight line B) This is correct since the deflection of some alpha particles is away from center point C) This is correct because a small number of alpha...
  2. tommm222

    I Can Geant4 Simulate Alpha Particles in a Bragg Chamber?

    Me and my colleagues need to analyse data from a Bragg chamber. We have sources of Cm244, Am241, Np237 sending alpha particles in the chamber which is fill with Argon and CH4 at 1%. Is there any software that can simulate di situation ? I downloaded SRIM but i’m not sure it is the best one for...
  3. eneacasucci

    I Negative Q-value for 7Li(alpha,n) reaction

    I see that the Q value for the reaction 7Li + α -> 10B + neutron is Q=-2789.909 keV, which is a negative value. I knew that Q<0 means that the reaction is not spontaneous. The "Glenn F. Knoll - Radiation detection and Measurement" says: "In particular, the 7Li (α, n) reaction with its highly...
  4. S

    A Get Expert Help with Apex Alpha Status Issue - Canberra Guide

    Hi, friends! Who can help with problem with Apex Alpha? I did background check procedure, after that chambers set status "count done". And now I can't change this status, and can't take measurements. How return status "available"? Reconnect and restart vdm service doesn't help.
  5. S

    B Night Sky of Alpha Centauri: Sol as a Bright Star

    I finally got around to watching the movie "Avatar", which takes place in the Alpha Centauri system. I was thinking that a great little scene between the 2 main characters (i.e., the paraplegic Earthling and the Centauri woman) would have been looking up at the night sky and seeing Sol as a...
  6. jianggong

    14MeV neutrons in MCNP interact with carbon without producing alpha

    14MeV neutrons in MCNP interact with carbon without producing alpha particles and protons, yes Questions about my cross section data? I've tried ENDFB8/B7.1, JEFF3.3, JENDL5, CENDL3.2 without any results, but if you use phys:n model, it looks like alpha particles will be produced, but it doesn't...
  7. Vilius

    Why Don't GM Counters Detect Alpha Particles?

    Hi, I am an undergraduate electronics engineer building a GM counter for my final assessment. I read a lot of theory about GM counters as well as the nuclear physics theories in general, but there is one thing I can not find an answer to. Why do none of the GM counters detect alpha particles? I...
  8. haha0p1

    Kinetic energy of an alpha particle

    Kindly help me solve this question. The only thing so far that I know in this question is that energy is conserved and the momentum of Alpha particle will equal momentum of Thorium.
  9. W

    B Where Are the To-Scale Diagrams of Alpha Centauri's Orbits?

    I sometimes get surprised by things that do not seem to exist in this world. For example, as far as I know, nobody has ever, during the entire history of photography, made a photographic time-lapse of lunar libration. There are plenty of computer renderings, but no photographic time-lapse...
  10. D

    How Can Planetary Movements Affect Time and Illumination on an Inhabited Planet?

    Hey,I was wondering if anyone could point me to some reliable and vulgarized sources about complex planetary movements? For instance, let's imagine an inhabited earth-like planet having four moons of various sizes and two suns. How can I reastically establish the "time decorum" on the planet...
  11. tbn032

    B Exploring the Alpha Particle-Electron Interaction in Gold Foil Experiments

    My current understanding: The mass of alpha particle is approximately 7340.6 times higher than the mass of electron.in the gold foil scattering experiment the deflection of alpha particle due to electron is approximately zero. The reason that is given is that since the electron is much lighter...
  12. kolleamm

    B Mini spacecraft to Alpha Centauri

    The idea for the mission is that if we built a spacecraft small enough, we could push it with laser(s) to Alpha Centuri within a resonable amount of time, and once there it could send us back images of the star/planets. My question is, would a tiny spacecraft even able to transmit the data...
  13. W

    I Can you tell the difference between two neutrons in an alpha particle?

    Can you tell the difference between two neutrons in an alpha particle? In one alpha particle, we know that the sum of the spins of two neutrons is zero. Can a neutron with upspin and a neutron with downspin be distinguished from each other? Or can't you tell because it's superimposed?
  14. O

    B Alpha Particles of Uranium 238

    I have a simple question. Do alpha particles from radiation arc and fall after leaving its source? Are these particles bound by the same gravitational laws as us?
  15. W

    Determine how much energy the alpha particle carries

    I can follow through all of this worked example until the final step 55/56x4.84= 4.75MeV Where does the 56 come from?
  16. PeroK

    Wolfram Alpha (free) Limitations

    When I put the following integral into the free version of Wolfram I get a sensible answer: $$\int \frac{1}{(1 - \frac 1 u)\sqrt{\frac 1 u - a}}du$$The function includes an inverse ##\tanh## function that (as expected) diverges as ##u \to 1##. But, if I try: $$\int \frac{1}{(1 - \frac 1...
  17. S

    A Alpha Stopping Power Database for High Z Materials

    That's about it. I've been trying to do the calculation manually with Bethe-Bloche without corrections in the energy range I'm interested in (1-10 MeV) for the highest Z material with data available for validation (Uranium), but I can't get a result that agree well with the database, so I'm...
  18. DaveC426913

    MATLAB Learning Curve of Wolfram Alpha or Matlab

    I should probably get one or two of these under my belt. My current need is to plot a ... I guess it's a heat map. I've got a map of my local area and I want to determine the geographical centre of a number of points (say, seven). So, for every xy "cell" on the map, I'll use pythagoras to...
  19. Astronuc

    Some 'lucky few' have 'resistance' or immunity to SARS-Cov-2 (Alpha?)

    Back in June 2020, in São Paulo, Brazil, Thais Andrade has avoided infection with Covid-19 though her husband, Erik Soares de Araujo, fell seriously ill and had to be hospitalized. https://www.statnews.com/2021/08/23/lucky-few-seem-resistant-to-covid19-scientists-want-to-know-why/ Scientists...
  20. G

    I Usable energy from alpha particles?

    Please excuse my physics ignorance. Can usable energy be extracted from alpha particles? Perhaps in a manner similar to a photovoltaic panel producing power when exposed to light? Thank you.
  21. O

    I Maximum acceleration of an alpha particle?

    I would like to estimate the maximum acceleration (or deceleration) of an alpha particle that is backscattered by a heavy atom, like in Rutherford backscattering. I am interested in the order of magnitude, not in a precise value. I am assuming the collision is elastic. The kinetic energy of the...
  22. L

    Calculation on spontaneous fission and effect from alpha decay

    Summary:: Help needed on how to calculate on spontaneous fission and effect from alpha decay Heat from alpha decay from Pu-238 is used to generate direct current. At the beginning (1977) it generated 470W, how large is the effect now? And if the efficiency between the electricity and heat...
  23. Haorong Wu

    The representation matrix for alpha and beta in Dirac equation

    In the 4-dimensional representation of ##\beta##, ## \beta=\begin{pmatrix}\mathbf I & \mathbf 0 \\ \mathbf0 & -\mathbf I\end{pmatrix} ,## and we can suppose ## \alpha_i=\begin{pmatrix}\mathbf A_i & \mathbf B_i \\ \mathbf C_i & \mathbf D_i\end{pmatrix} ##. From the anti-commutation relation...
  24. PandaKitten

    Estimating the energy of an alpha particle using Bethe's formula

    The question is below. I tried reasoning that because x is constant, E is also constant however that gives me values in the range of 10^51. Then I tried to use numpy's ivp_solve function to solve the differential equation however I wasn't able to get that working either. Apparently I'm meant to...
  25. AN630078

    Which Radiation Type Has the Most Energy: Alpha, Beta, or Gamma?

    Well, gamma photons are pure energy, so surely a gamma photon would have the most energy since gamma-ray photons generally have energies greater than 100 keV. An alpha particle has the highest ionising power of the three on account of its mass, it roughly has a kinetic energy of 5 MeV, whereas...
  26. D

    Can 96-Cm-247 Undergo Alpha Decay?

  27. G

    B Question about final k.e. of alpha and Polonium after decay of Radon

    Hi community, I've been looking through this question And I have a conceptual if I may (this is not homework I'm a 52 year old programmer just trying to learn and understand). You can calculate the mass loss of 0.006 u when you go from the Radon nucleus to the Polonium and alpha particle. You...
  28. C

    Rutherford Scattering of an Alpha Particle

    I have the equation but I am unsure of what my r min would be. Is it the sum of the radii or the difference? I am also confused on what z1 would be. I am fairly sure z2 is the atomic number of Fe(26) but I am unsure of this as well. Edit: I just read that z1 could be 2, is this correct?
  29. greg_rack

    Isotope decay via alpha and beta particle emissions

    This problem really confused me, since I can't get the link between particles emitted(alpha and beta, but which are the differences between those?) and changes in mass and atomic number of the isotope. For this one, I can't really show you my attempt since there ain't one...
  30. aspodkfpo

    Doppler effect and hydrogen alpha distributions

    https://www.asi.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/PhysicsASOE2014solutions.pdf q 14b) i) Assuming that the planet is rotating at a constant rate, shouldn't the distribution be even across all wavelengths, or do I have something very wrong with my model. I take the graph as the summation of...
  31. H

    B Alpha particle in a force field depiction

    Hello, I was glazing through what I would consider an advanced physics textbook and I saw this image. It is a schematic picture of an alpha-particle in a field of an atom. Now, can someone get me started on what (and why and how) is going on in it? Especially with the fraction with pi.
  32. F

    Why does an alpha particle curve less in a magnetic field than a beta?

    Suppose you are analyzing this image. The question to answer is: Explain why the alpha particle's path has a larger radius than either of the beta particle paths. Justify your answer using either momentum or charge-to-mass ratio. When you are answering this, suppose you know that , in...
  33. Saracen Rue

    I Find the value of this definite integral in terms of t, s and alpha

    One of the maths groups I'm apart of on Facebook posts (usually) daily maths challenges. Typically they act as small brain teaser for when I wake up and I can solve them without much trouble. However, today's was more challenging: (Note: blue indicates a variable and red indicates a constant)...
  34. B

    I Type 1 Error Increases with Sample Size?

    My professor is teaching us that type 1 error increases with sample size if you keep alpha constant, and I think I understand what she's getting at, but I can't find anything online that supports the idea. Here's what I'm thinking: We accept that there is an equal chance that a flipped coin...
  35. K

    Determining # of Beta Decays from Alpha Decay

    Alpha particle has two protons and neutrons so mass = 4. 4x = 238 -206. x = 1/4(238-206) = 8 Alpha decays. How would I determine the number of Beta decays? Since the mass doesn't change here.
  36. Prabs3257

    Chemistry Tollens' test on Alpha hydroxy ketones

    I know its because of tautomerism that they form an aldehyde group because of which they give the test but can all alpha hydroxy ketones give tollens test or only those in which hydroxy group is on the terminal carbon ??
  37. Hemanta

    Comparing the KE of Alpha and Beta particles

    I try solving it but the answer didn’t match
  38. sophiecentaur

    B Learning to use a Solar Scope with an H alpha filter

    I just bought a Coronado and, typically, there are no sunspots to look at. If there were, then I could compare what I see in that dim dark red image with what my basic Baader shiny filter delivers. I understand that there's a learning process involved and I imagine all first-time users have had...
  39. haushofer

    I Alpha decay: why Helium nuclei?

    Dear all, in my teaching of nuclear physics at high school level I noticed that I never really wondered about why alpha decay consists of helium nuclei. So I consulted a lot of lecture notes online, but couldn't find a satisfying answer. The texts I used in the past are "concepts of modern...
  40. Spinnor

    I Is this a way to stimulate an alpha emitter?

    Say we can create a high energy particle beam of radioactive alpha emitting nuclei (all the same kind). Let the particle beam have an energy such that if an alpha particle is emitted in the direction opposite to the beam direction the alpha particle will appear in the lab frame to be almost at...
  41. Remedyworld

    Stargazing Can I Use a DIY Hydrogen Alpha Solar Filter for Detailed Sun Photography?

    I'm interested in doing more detailed photos of the Sun using my solar filter and a 1.25" Hydrogen Alpha (Ha) filter. Is this possible to do or is it best to purchase a Coronado telescope?
  42. E

    Closest approach of alpha particle - two separate methods

    I've found two methods for doing this problem and they give different answers. Method 1: Assume the larger nucleus does not move, and simply equate energies before the collision and at the point of closest approach:$$\frac{1}{2} m v^{2} = \frac{qQ}{4\pi\epsilon_{0}r}$$ Method 2: Assume the...
  43. A

    B The search for habitable exoplanets in Alpha Centauri

    In October 2012, astronomers announced the discovery of an exoplanet orbiting the star Alpha Centauri B. However, three years later, they concluded that it probably doesn’t exist. In 2013, astronomers also detected another possible exoplanet, but it hasn’t been confirmed yet. As of today, no...
  44. L

    Dielectric interface plate capacitor at angle alpha

    Consider a plate capacitor with a dielectric interface (\epsilon = \epsilon_0*\epsilon_r, thickness=d) tilted at the angle \alpha . Outside the interface \epsilon = \epsilon_0. Without dielectric interface is the field \vec{E}=E_0*\vec{e_z}. Determine the E-field inside and outside the...
  45. neilparker62

    Insights Revisiting The Deuterium Lyman Alpha Line Experiment

    [url="https://www.physicsforums.com/insights/the-deuterium-lyman-alpha-line/"]Continue reading...
  46. I

    Minimum separation between incoming proton and alpha particle

    Proton is going towards the ##\alpha## particle. So, I am thinking of using the conservation of energy as the initial kinetic energy of the proton is known and initial interaction potential energy is zero. But, we don't know the kinetic energies of proton and ##\alpha## particle when they are at...
  47. Shivam

    Calculating theta from alpha: Tan(theta)=Cot(alpha)

    After impact VCos(alpha) will be normal to the inclined, now i calculated for theta by using [ Tan(theta) = vCos(alpha)/vSin(alpha),. Tan(theta)= Cot(alpha) ]. I don't know how to solve further to get value of theta, according to book thta = alpha.
  48. W

    I Duration of a round-trip to Alpha Centauri

    (No, this is not homework assignment. This is something I'm curious about.) Assume an astronaut were to travel from Earth to Alpha Centauri (about 4.37 light years distance) in a rocket. During the first half of the distance the rocket constantly accelerates at a comfortable 9.8 m/s2. At the...
  49. neilparker62

    Insights Calculating the Balmer Alpha Line: Atomic Hydrogen

    Continue reading...
  50. A

    Alpha Decay and Total Kinetic Energy

    Since we are looking for K total, I summed the given kinetic energy for lead and the typical kinetic energy of an alpha particle: 0.12 + 5 = 5.12 MeV. My answer is definitely wrong, but I don't how I should approach the problem.
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