An atomic nucleus suddenly bursts apart (fission) into two pieces. Piece A with mass mA travels to the left with a speed of vA. Piece B with mass mB travels to the right with speed vB. Show the velocity of piece B in terms of mA, mB and VA. Solution: Consider that the nucleus is not acted by an external force. Thus, momentum is conserved, so: pBf + pAf = 0 Substituting the expression for momentum results to mBv_____ + _____mAv_____ = 0 Deriving the expression for the velocity of piece B results to v_____=(mA/m_____)vA

Physics for Scientists and Engineers: Foundations and Connections
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ISBN:9781133939146
Author:Katz, Debora M.
Publisher:Katz, Debora M.
Chapter39: Relativity
Section: Chapter Questions
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An atomic nucleus suddenly bursts apart (fission) into two pieces. Piece A with mass mA travels to the left with a speed of vA. Piece B with mass mB travels to the right with speed vB. Show the velocity of piece B in terms of mAmB and VA.

Solution:

Consider that the nucleus is not acted by an external force. Thus, momentum is conserved, so:

pBf + pAf = 0

Substituting the expression for momentum results to

mBv_____ + _____mAv_____ = 0

Deriving the expression for the velocity of piece B results to

v_____=(mA/m_____)vA

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