BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE – PILANI, GOA CAMPUSInstruction Division

Second Semester 2007 - 2008Course Handout Part II

In addition to Part I (General Handout) for all courses (appended to the time table), this portion givesfurther specific details regarding the course.

8 January 2008

Course No.: PHY GC341Course Title: Nuclear PhysicsInstructor-in-Charge: P. N. Deepak

1. Scope and Objectives of this courseThis course is an introduction to the field of nuclear physics. Students not only will study the bulkproperties of nuclei but also the basic nucleon-nucleon interaction. They would also be studying variousmodels of the nuclei like the shell-model and the collective model. They are introduced to variousdecay modes of the nucleus and also nuclear reactions. Nuclear Physics, even at an introductory level,cannot be discussed without quantum mechanics. It is in fact one of the objectives of the course to makestudents appreciate this. They will also appreciate the use of angular momentum techniques, developedduring the course of the lectures.

We believe this course will serve as a stepping stone for students who want to pursue further studies inadvanced nuclear physics and particle physics.

2. Text BookNuclear Physics, V. Devanathan, Narosa Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. (2006).

Reference Books (copies are available in the library)1. Introductory Nuclear Physics, P. E. Hodgson, E. Gadioli and E. Gadioli Erba, Oxford University Press(2003).2. Basic ideas and concepts in Nuclear Physics, K. Heyde, Institute of Physics Publishing (3rd edition,2004).

3. Course Plan(Note: CN stands for class notes.)

No. Topic & description of material covered No. of Reference toLects. textual material

1. Introduction 1 Chapter 12. Bulk properties of the nuclei I: Liquid drop model,

Bethe-Weizsacker mass formula – most stable iso-bar, nuclear fission Nuclear size: mirror nuclei

4 2.2-2.4, 2.6, 2.7

3. Bulk properties of the nuclei II: Electricquadrupole moment, magnetic dipole moment,Schmidt model

3 Chapter 3

4. The two nucleon problem I: Bound state-thedeuteron, simple considerations using central po-tential, effect of hard core, deuteron radial wavefunction, effect of the tensor potential, electricquadrupole moment and magnetic moment

5 Chapter 5

5. The two nucleon problem II: isospin formalism,general form of the nucleon-nucleon (NN) po-tential, exchange forces, meson theory of nu-clear forces, experimental evidence, low energyNN scattering, scattering cross section, scatteringlength, effective-range theory, spin-dependence

8 Chapter 4, Appendix A and CN

6. Models of nuclear structure I: the nuclearshell model-magic numbers, independent particlemodel, ground state configurations and spins

3 6.1-6.3

7. Models of nuclear structure II.: Collective model-vibrational and rotational spectra

4 7.1, 7.2

8. Nuclear decay I: Alpha decay-Q-value, potentialbarrier problem, Gamow’s theory, alpha-particleenergy spectrum

3 Chapter 8

9. Nuclear decay II: Beta-decay-Fermi’s theory, clas-sification, neutrino mass, parity violation

3 9.1-9.4

10. Nuclear decay III: Radioactive decay laws, appli-cation to radiometric dating

2 CN

11. Nuclear reactions: The compound nucleus model,Breit-Wigner formula, nuclear fission

2 12.1, 12.4

Total no. of Lecture Hours: 38

4. Evaluation Scheme

Component Duration Weightage(%) Date & Time RemarksTest I 60 mnts. 20% Closed BookTest II 60 mnts. 20% Closed BookAssignments 10%Attendance 10%ComprehensiveExamination

180 mnts. 40% Closed Book

5. Office Consultation Hours To be announced in class6. Notices C-wing Student Notice Board only7. Make-up Policy Very strict; only for genuine reasons such as hospitalization or being out of stationwith prior permission

Instructor-in-chargePHY GC341

2