The neutral deuterium atom, H,has a mass of 2.014102 u; a neutral hydrogen atom has a mass of 1.007825 u; a neutron has a mass of 1.008665 u; and a proton has a mass of 1.007277 u.What is the binding energy of the H nucleus? (1 u = 931.494 MeV/c²)

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The mass of a 11eab929_28f4_05c2_99e6_570d19c40c3d_TB4470_11 H nucleus is 2.014102 u
The mass of 1 proton and 1 neutron is 1.007277 u + 1.008665 u = 2.016942 u
The difference in mass is the mass defect, which is 2.016942 u - 2.014102 u = 0.00284 u
Using E = mc2, the binding energy is (0.00284 u)(931.494 MeV/c2/u) = 2.649 MeV
Therefore, the binding energy of the 11eab929_28f4_05c2_99e6_570d19c40c3d_TB4470_11 H nucleus is 2.2 MeV (rounded to one decimal place).

The Neutral Deuterium Atom, H,has a Mass of 2