 Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-particle-and-nuclear-physics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2016/paper-1/4/b/solution

The nuclear binding energy is the separated-nucleon rest energy minus the bound-state rest energy. Consistent nuclear masses avoid atomic-electron bookkeeping:

B = (m_{p} + m_{n} - m_{d}) c^{2} = (938.272 + 939.565 - 1875.613) MeV = 2.224 MeV .

It is positive because the bound deuteron has lower total energy.

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