Modern Physics Terms
Atom
A prison for the protons, neutrons, and electrons.Quantized
Being made of discrete intervals, rather than a continuous spread. Think of packaged (or discrete) food snacks versus an all you can eat buffet.Planck's Constant
The number correlating the energy of light to its frequency as well as the wavelength of light to its momentum. It appears elsewhere in quantum physics too.Electron
A tiny, negative particle. It likes patrolling outside the nucleus of an atom.Alpha Particle
An alpha male particle with not 1 but 2 positive charges because it's a Helium nucleus. That thing is unstoppable. Okay, not literally.Nucleus
The compact center of an atom where neutrons and protons conglomerate. It's like a boiling soup of nuclear energy in there.Proton
P is for positive. A positively charged particle. Lives in the nucleus of an atom, usually.Neutron
N is for neutral. A particle that has no charge. Also lives in the nucleus.Nucleon
Particles that make up the nucleus of an atom. Neutrons and protons are both nucleons. Now, say it three times. Faster!Mass Number
The number for an atom that represents its mass. How very straightforward.Atomic Number
The number for an atom that represents its number of protons. Yes, it should be called the proton number, and sometimes is.Binding Energy
The amount of energy that ensures the captivity of electrons, protons, and neutrons within an atom or nucleus. It changes with the mass number and proton number.Ion
A charged atom. The result of an electron leaving nucleus patrol or having too many electrons on nucleus patrol. This results in a positively charged ion, which appeals to other atoms, but this is false advertisement. The ion just wants to attract another free electron to replace the one that abandoned post. It can happen with more than one electron per atom, too. Alternatively, an ion can be an atom with a negative charge thanks to an extra electron, looking for something to dump them off on.Ionizing Energy
The energy required to create an ion from a neutral atom. In other words, we might say it's a superhero photon that frees an electron from its atomic prison. Or, it's the energy required to force an electron to join a previously neutral atom.Ground State
Think of it as being grounded. The electrons have their lowest possible energies.Excited State
An electrons party mode. As opposed to occupying their lowest possible energy (ground state), the electrons occupy higher energy levels usually while dancing.Isotope
The letter p stands for proton. Two atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons, but a different number of neutrons, are isotopes.Isotone
The letter n stands for neutron. Two atoms of different elements that have the same number of neutrons are isotones.Photon
A light "particle." It's really more of a package with a frequency, wavelength, and energy, but "particle" will do.Scattering
It's what it sounds like, but with atomic particles both scattered and doing the scattering.Back Scattering
The scattering of particles in the opposite direction from the one they were traveling: a subatomic (or atomic) about-face.Spectroscopy
The study of matter interacting with light. It leads to emission and absorption spectrums, among other things.Emission Spectrum
The "fingerprints" of an element emitting light at specific wavelengths corresponding to the energy released as electrons drop from an excited state into a state with less energy, including but not limited to the ground state.Absorption Spectrum
The "fingerprints," so to speak, of any element, each of which absorbs light at specific wavelengths unique to that element. Yeah, it's just like the emission spectrum for a given element but in reverse.Nuclear Force
The nuclear glue that binds the nucleus together.Strong Force
The strong(er) part of the nuclear force. The Jedi Force.Weak Force
The weak(er) part of the nuclear force. Not the Force but something near it.Mass Defect
We'd think the nucleus mass would equal the mass of its nucleons. It doesn't. This discrepancy is the mass defect. How very deceptive, or even defective.Stable Isotope
An isotope with a stable nucleus is like a stable adult. He (or she) is in a stable relationship, job, income, house, etc. Life is good. No fireworks.Radioactivity
When an adult isotope starts to spend too much money and radiates it away, it will decay into another isotope, with less money but hopefully more stable.Alpha Radiation
One or more alpha particles emitted in nuclear decay of some kind.Beta Radiation
One or more beta particles (high speed electrons or positrons) emitted in some types of radioactive decay .Gamma Radiation
Gamma rays, high energy photons, a result of radioactivity. This radiation is no-one's friend.Activity
Number of decays per second from a radioactive substance.Becquerel
A unit of radioactivity. Also, fun word to say out loud.Mean Lifetime, τ
The average lifetime of a radioactive particle. It varies by particle: milliseconds to millennia. Actually, it varies beyond those extremes..Decay Constant
The inverse or opposite of a lifetime. If something doesn't live long, it decays quickly.Half-Life
The amount of time it takes for half of the radioactive substance to decay into something else.Quark
Tiny, quirky particles that make up nucleons, as such they are one of the basic building blocks of matter.Up Quark
A type of quark with a
charge.Down Quark
A type of quark with a
charge.