Question Video: Describing the Forces That Act on the Particles in the Nucleus of an Atom | Nagwa Question Video: Describing the Forces That Act on the Particles in the Nucleus of an Atom | Nagwa

Question Video: Describing the Forces That Act on the Particles in the Nucleus of an Atom Science • Third Year of Preparatory School

Which of the following statements correctly describes the forces that act on the particles in the nucleus of an atom? [A] There are only attractive forces on the particles. [B] There are only repulsive forces on the particles. [C] There are no forces on the particles. [D] There are attractive and repulsive forces on the particles.

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Video Transcript

Which of the following statements correctly describes the forces that act on the particles in the nucleus of an atom? (A) There are only attractive forces on the particles. (B) There are only repulsive forces on the particles. (C) There are no forces on the particles. (D) There are attractive and repulsive forces on the particles.

What forces act on the particles in the nucleus of an atom? First of all, what particles are there in the nucleus? Recall that there are three types of subatomic particles in an atom. These are the proton, the electron, and the neutron. Electrons are negatively charged and are found around the nucleus, not within the nucleus. A nucleus is made of protons and neutrons. Protons are positively charged. Neutrons are uncharged, or neutral.

It is essential to understand that in a stable atom, protons and neutrons do not leave the nucleus of the atom. The protons and neutrons are held together. It is also extremely important to recall that same-sign charges repel each other. Protons are both positively charged and so repel each other. Therefore, protons in a nucleus must repel each other.

We see then that there must be repulsive forces acting on protons in a nucleus. We have said though that the particles in a nucleus are held together. The protons stay in the nucleus, so a force must attract the protons to at least some parts of the nucleus. The force that holds protons in a nucleus is called the strong nuclear force.

We see then that there must be both attractive and repulsive forces in the nucleus. Option (D) is correct.

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