Kinetic energy above which: a) a neutron and b) an electron may be considered relativistic

giovedì, Dicembre 31st, 2020

kinetic energy,neutron,electron
Fig. 1

Exercise of Nuclear reactor physics by ing. Giorgio Bertucelli.

Estimate the speed, in m /s , and the kinetic energy, in MeV , above which: a) a neutron and b) an electron may be considered relativistic.


Solution
The rest mass of a neutron n is:


The rest mass of an electron e is:

A relativistic body is one whose speed V is >10/100 of light speed c=3·10^8 m/s. The relativistic mass m' of a body is related to rest mass m by

If the ratio V/c >= 0.1 we can write


Relativistic kinetic energy of n

Relativistic kinetic energy of e

(altro…)



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