Why does neutron capture work?
A)Neutrons have no repulsive barrier to overcome in combining with positively charged nuclei.
B)Neutrinos, because of their low mass and high speed, easily penetrate nuclei.
C)Single protons have little repulsion to heavy nuclei and easily fuse with them.
D)Photodisintegration makes many alpha particles, available for capture by nuclei.
E)Neutronization captures all the protons and electrons.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Neutrons have no repulsive barrier to overcome in combining with positively charged nuclei. Since they have no charge, they do not experience electrostatic repulsion when they approach a nucleus, making neutron capture a relatively easy process. Neutrons have no repulsive barrier to overcome in combining with positively charged nuclei. This means that they can easily be captured by nuclei without the need for a lot of energy or force to overcome repulsion.

Why Does Neutron Capture Work