Definitions for nuclear fission
nu·cle·ar fis·sion

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. fission, nuclear fissionnoun

   a nuclear reaction in which a massive nucleus splits into smaller nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy

WiktionaryRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. nuclear fissionnoun

   a nuclear reaction in which a large nucleus splits into smaller ones with the simultaneous release of energy

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Nuclear fission

   In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, nuclear fission is a nuclear reaction or a radioactive decay process in which the nucleus of an atom splits into two or more smaller, lighter nuclei. The fission process often produces gamma photons, and releases a very large amount of energy even by the energetic standards of radioactive decay. Nuclear fission of heavy elements was discovered on December 17, 1938 by German Otto Hahn and his assistant Fritz Strassmann, and explained theoretically in January 1939 by Lise Meitner and her nephew Otto Robert Frisch. Frisch named the process by analogy with biological fission of living cells. For heavy nuclides, it is an exothermic reaction which can release large amounts of energy both as electromagnetic radiation and as kinetic energy of the fragments (heating the bulk material where fission takes place). In order for fission to produce energy, the total binding energy of the resulting elements must be more negative (greater binding energy) than that of the starting element. Fission is a form of nuclear transmutation because the resulting fragments are not the same element as the original atom. The two (or more) nuclei produced are most often of comparable but slightly different sizes, typically with a mass ratio of products of about 3 to 2, for common fissile isotopes. Most fissions are binary fissions (producing two charged fragments), but occasionally (2 to 4 times per 1000 events), three positively charged fragments are produced, in a ternary fission. The smallest of these fragments in ternary processes ranges in size from a proton to an argon nucleus. Apart from fission induced by a neutron, harnessed and exploited by humans, a natural form of spontaneous radioactive decay (not requiring a neutron) is also referred to as fission, and occurs especially in very high-mass-number isotopes. Spontaneous fission was discovered in 1940 by Flyorov, Petrzhak, and Kurchatov in Moscow, when they confirmed that, without bombardment by neutrons, the fission rate of uranium was indeed negligible, as predicted by Niels Bohr; it was not.The unpredictable composition of the products (which vary in a broad probabilistic and somewhat chaotic manner) distinguishes fission from purely quantum tunneling processes such as proton emission, alpha decay, and cluster decay, which give the same products each time. Nuclear fission produces energy for nuclear power and drives the explosion of nuclear weapons. Both uses are possible because certain substances called nuclear fuels undergo fission when struck by fission neutrons, and in turn emit neutrons when they break apart. This makes a self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction possible, releasing energy at a controlled rate in a nuclear reactor or at a very rapid, uncontrolled rate in a nuclear weapon. The amount of free energy contained in nuclear fuel is millions of times the amount of free energy contained in a similar mass of chemical fuel such as gasoline, making nuclear fission a very dense source of energy. The products of nuclear fission, however, are on average far more radioactive than the heavy elements which are normally fissioned as fuel, and remain so for significant amounts of time, giving rise to a nuclear waste problem. Concerns over nuclear waste accumulation and over the destructive potential of nuclear weapons are a counterbalance to the peaceful desire to use fission as an energy source.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. nuclear fission

   Nuclear fission is a process in nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry where the nucleus of an atom, usually a heavy atom such as uranium or plutonium, is split into two or more smaller, lighter nuclei, often along with the release of a large amount of energy in the form of gamma photons and free neutrons. This reaction forms the basics of nuclear power and nuclear weapons.

WikidataRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Nuclear fission

   In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, nuclear fission is either a nuclear reaction or a radioactive decay process in which the nucleus of an atom splits into smaller parts. The fission process often produces free neutrons and photons, and releases a very large amount of energy even by the energetic standards of radioactive decay. Nuclear fission of heavy elements was discovered in 1938 by Lise Meitner, Otto Hahn, Fritz Strassmann, and Otto Robert Frisch. It was named by analogy with biological fission of living cells. It is an exothermic reaction which can release large amounts of energy both as electromagnetic radiation and as kinetic energy of the fragments. In order for fission to produce energy, the total binding energy of the resulting elements must be greater than that of the starting element. Fission is a form of nuclear transmutation because the resulting fragments are not the same element as the original atom. The two nuclei produced are most often of comparable but slightly different sizes, typically with a mass ratio of products of about 3 to 2, for common fissile isotopes. Most fissions are binary fissions, but occasionally, three positively charged fragments are produced, in a ternary fission. The smallest of these fragments in ternary processes ranges in size from a proton to an argon nucleus.

U.S. National Library of MedicineRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Nuclear Fission

   Nuclear reaction in which the nucleus of a heavy atom such as uranium or plutonium is split into two approximately equal parts by a neutron, charged particle, or photon.

Matched Categories

1. • Nuclear Reaction

How to pronounce nuclear fission?

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How to say nuclear fission in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of nuclear fission in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of nuclear fission in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of nuclear fission in a Sentence

1. Eric Burhop:

   The discovery of nuclear fission was a German discovery and it appeared very likely that German physicists would be developing nuclear weapons, one knew that if the Nazis were to obtain this weapon then it would have a a decisive influence on the war, and Hitler would have no inhibitions about how to use the weapon.

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=nuclear fission
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Nuclear_Fission
3. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Fission
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=nuclear fission