Icon class icon_class fas fa-quote-left icon_class_computed fas fa-quote-left Related content The neutron is classified as a hadron, because it is a composite particle made of quarks. Source Wikipedia Copyright information Text from Wikipedia and Wiktionary web pages quoted for educational purposes is subject to the Wikipedia Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike Licence Snippet kind INFO Keywords neutron Previous snippet Protons and neutrons constitute the nuclei of atoms. Full quote Since protons and neutrons behave similarly within the nucleus, and each has a mass of approximately one atomic mass unit, they are both referred to as nucleons. URL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron Next snippet Related snippets The neutron is a subatomic particle, symbol n or n0, with no electric charge and a mass slightly greater than that of a proton. Protons and neutrons constitute the nuclei of atoms. The neutron ... is a spin-½ fermion. Protons and neutrons, each with masses of approximately one atomic mass unit, are collectively referred to as "nucleons" (particles present in atomic nuclei). Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei. Related snippets (backlinks) A free neutron is unstable, decaying to a proton, electron and antineutrino with a mean lifetime of just under 15 minutes (881.5±1.5 s). This radioactive decay, known as beta decay, is possible because the mass of the neutron is slightly greater than the proton. The free proton is stable. Neutrons or protons bound in a nucleus can be stable or unstable, however, depending on the nuclide. Beta decay, in which neutrons decay to protons, or vice versa, is governed by the weak force, and it requires the emission or absorption of electrons and neutrinos, or their antiparticles. The free neutron has a mass of 939,565,413.3 eV/c2, or 1.674927471×10−27 kg, or 1.00866491588 u. The neutron has a mean square radius of about 0.8×10−15 m, or 0.8 fm, and it is a spin-½ fermion. The neutron has no measurable electric charge. With its positive electric charge, the proton is directly influenced by electric fields, whereas the neutron is unaffected by electric fields. The neutron has a magnetic moment, however, so the neutron is influenced by magnetic fields. The neutron's magnetic moment has a negative value, because its orientation is opposite to the neutron's spin. The neutron is classified as a hadron, because it is a composite particle made of quarks. The neutron is also classified as a baryon, because it is composed of three valence quarks. The finite size of the neutron and its magnetic moment both indicate that the neutron is a composite, rather than elementary, particle. A neutron contains two down quarks with charge −1⁄3 e and one up quark with charge +2⁄3 e. Visit also Visit also (backlinks) Flags
