Nuclear Anomalies

Various nuclear models have been proposed to describe the nuclear structure. Some of these models are the liquid drop, alpha particle models, shell or optical models, and lattice models. There are known quantities about the nucleus that successful models need to explain. Currently two models are use in combination to explain most qualities of the nucleus, the liquid drop model and the shell model.

Currently though most of these problems are skipped over, simply ignored or dismissed in the text books. Many times these problems are treated as unknowns that are just not well understood because of quantum mechanics or some other unknown phenomena of the microscopic world. Even so, the better a model explains these anomalies the closer that model is to being correct.

These anomalies are not discussed in detail here, but they are discussed in detail in several of the references. The anomalies referred to are only meant to apprise the reader of some of the problems that have not been answered by the standard models.

However, the model presented in this thesis does answer these questions.

1. Mean Free Path The short mean-free-path within the nucleus fits well with the Liquid Drop Model but because a long mean-free-path is needed for the shell model. The short mean-free-path within the nucleus is disastrous for the Shell Model.

2. Nuclear Energy States The liquid drop model does not explain different energy states of the nucleus but the shell model does.

3. No Central Force A shell structure requires a central force to build the shells around. The positively charged nucleus is the central force around which the electron shell structure is formed. However in the nucleus there is no central force for any shells to form around.

4. Alpha Particles 1 The alpha particle model works well for nuclei lighter than calcium, but for nuclei heavier than calcium the extra neutrons in the nucleus are difficult to explain.

5. Alpha Particles 2 The alpha particle has no magnetic dipole, zero spin and a charge of plus two. Why is the alpha particle so stable and still have all these qualities?

6. "Realistic" Verses "Effective" Nuclear Force The value of short-range-strong interaction that has been deduced from high energy experimental work does not seem to operate in the same manner in the nucleus. When trying to calculate strong force effect in the nucleus an effective force must be used. The "realistic" nuclear force obtained from experiment and the "effective" nuclear force observed in nuclei are different.

7. Strong Force Verses Electric and Magnetic Forces in the Nucleus Lack of any established relationships between the effects of the nuclear force with respect to the electric and magnetic forces on the structure of the nucleus.

8. Nuclear Shape The shape of the nucleus as determined by scattering experiments varies and is not always spherical. The nuclear shape actually ranging from prolate, too oblate, too spherical with carbon12 being almost a flat plate.

9. Asymmetrical Nuclear Fission Products Nuclear fissions are not symmetrical, which they should be for a liquid drop model and even the shell model. Additionally the heavy fragments of fissions of all heavy elements that under go fissions seem to be centered between barium at 56 protons and Cerium at 58 protons with an average atomic weight of around 139. Why is the size of the large fragments so consistent? Why are daughter products of fissions not produced symmetrically?

10. Super Heavy Stable Elements Where is the apparent missing super heavy island of nuclear stability, the Magic Nuclear Island, that is predicted by the shell model?

11. Valley of Stability Why is the valley of stable nuclei so narrow and interconnected? Why does the stable valley proceed from one element or isotope to the next, along such a well-defined path or flow?

12. Unlimited Neutrons What limits the number of neutral neutrons in the nucleus? Neutrons as the name implies are “neutral” so positive electrical forces should not push them out of the nucleus actually the strong force should attract and hold all the neutrons in the nucleus. So why don`t neutrons just keep building up ever increasing in the nucleus of any given element?

13. Strong Force Neutron Problem A proton and a neutron combine to form the deuterium, however two neutrons nor two protons will form a stable unit. Two protons are both positively charged so they repel, but neutrons are neutral so why do two neutrons resist staying together?

14. Fix Nucleon Positions Even though the nucleon positions in the nucleus are supposed to be uncertain there are several parameters that indicate the opposite is true. The magnetic dipole and spin are fixed values, that are sums of all the individual nucleons. These do not deviate and are so stable that the magnetic field can be used to orient the nucleus.

ADDITIONAL INTERESTING ANOMALIES IN & ALONG THE VALLEY OF STABILITY

15. Why is He4 or the alpha particle so stable and why does the alpha seem to play such a dominant roll in the nucleus?

16. The He4 to Li6 jump or step. Why are there no stable nuclei with 5 nucleons?

17. The Li7 to Be9 jump or step. Why are there no stable nuclei with 8 nucleons?

18. Why are there no stable nuclei that have 19 or 21 neutrons in the nucleus?
    a. And additionally why are there no stable nuclei that have
        35, 39, 45, 61, 71, 89, 115 and 123 neutrons in the nucleus?
         These are all odd numbers!

19. Why are there no stable nuclei that have 43 or 61 protons in the nucleus?
These are also odd numbers!
a. And why are there no stable nuclei that have more than 83 protons in the nucleus?

20. What happens in the nucleus at argon that requires a few extra neutrons in the nucleus?

21. What happens in the nucleus after nickel62, copper63 and zinc64?
    a. There is a gap at 35 neutrons.
    b. The maximum binding energy is achieved.
    c. The slope defining the valley of stability flattens.

22. Why are there no stable nuclei with 147 and 149 nucleons?
a. This all corresponds with the neutron gap at 87 and 89 neutrons
and the proton gap at 61 protons. What happens in the nucleus at promethium?

23. What happens in the nucleus at bismuth the last stable isotope?

24. Why does the uranium island of semi stability exist?

As you proceed thru this site everyone of these questions will be answered by the model presented in this site.