Why do protons in a very large nucleus have a greater chance of flying apart by electrical repulsion?
More protons with the same electrical charge are being pushed closer and closer (packed closer) together. That's why the number of neutrons must be increased in the heavier elements.
Protons in a very large nucleus have a greater chance of flying apart due to electrical repulsion because of the strong force between them. The strong force is responsible for holding the nucleus together, but it is only effective at very short distances. At larger distances, the electrical repulsion between positively charged protons becomes dominant.
According to Coulomb's law, like charges repel each other, and since protons are positively charged, they repel each other. As the size of the nucleus increases, the number of protons also increases, leading to a higher chance of protons being closer to each other and experiencing stronger electrical repulsion.
This electrical repulsion can overcome the strong force if the size of the nucleus is too large. As a result, the protons may start to move away from each other, causing the nucleus to become unstable and potentially break apart. This process is known as nuclear fission.
In summary, the larger the nucleus, the more protons it contains, and the greater the chance of electrical repulsion overpowering the strong force, leading to the potential breakup of the nucleus.
The protons in a very large nucleus have a greater chance of flying apart due to electrical repulsion because of the strong force and the electromagnetic force acting on them.
To understand this, let me explain a bit about the forces at play in the nucleus. The strong nuclear force is what holds the nucleus together. It is an attractive force that binds the protons and neutrons together. However, the electromagnetic force, which acts between charged particles, also plays a role.
Protons carry a positive charge, and like charges repel each other due to the electromagnetic force. So, in a large nucleus where there are many protons packed closely together, the repulsive forces between the protons become stronger. This means that the electromagnetic force is more significant in larger nuclei compared to smaller ones.
The strong nuclear force, being a short-range force, can overcome the electromagnetic repulsion when the protons are very close to each other. But as the size of the nucleus increases and more protons are added, the electromagnetic repulsion becomes harder to counteract. At a certain point, the electromagnetic repulsion overpowers the strong nuclear force, leading to a greater chance of the protons flying apart.
To summarize, in a very large nucleus, the increasing number of protons leads to a higher chance of electrical repulsion causing the protons to fly apart because the electromagnetic force becomes stronger compared to the strong nuclear force.