Nuclear magneton 2026-10-18
The nuclear magneton is the unit of magnetic momentwhere is the proton mass. For a nuclear spin operator , the nuclear magnetic moment is . Consequently its gyromagnetic ratio is , and its Larmor frequency in a uniform magnetic field of magnitude is . The nuclear magneton is smaller than the Bohr magneton by the electron-to-proton mass ratio.
The separate proton and neutron shell capacities are . Filled shells and paired particles have zero net spin and magnetic dipole moment. The single-particle nuclear magnetic moment is , with orbital factors , and .
For nitrogen, the eight neutrons form a closed shell. The seventh proton occupies , so , and the Landé g-factor givesHence the nuclear shell model predictsIts single-particle spin and parity is . The negative moment results from the proton spin being predominantly opposed to the total angular momentum in this level.
For oxygen, eight protons and the first eight neutrons are paired. The ninth neutron occupies , with , . Since its orbital factor is zero, . ThereforeThese are ideal single-particle predictions in units of the nuclear magneton, not fits incorporating nuclear configuration mixing.
Single-particle nuclear magnetic moment 2026-10-18
In the simplest nuclear shell model of an odd-mass number nucleus, paired nucleons contribute zero total angular momentum and magnetic dipole moment. The last unpaired nucleon supplies the nuclear spin and the stretched-state moment , where is the Landé g-factor and the nuclear magneton.
Using addition of angular momentum with givesFor , this reduces to . For , it givesThe free-nucleon orbital factors are for a proton and for a neutron. Residual nuclear interactions and configuration mixing can shift measured moments away from this ideal prediction. A single hole in an otherwise closed shell has the same stretched-state moment as a particle in that shell: removing the particle leaves total and moment .