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Nuclear & Particle Physics

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Nuclear & Particle Physics

Mass Defect

The difference between the total mass of an atom's individual free nucleons and the actual smaller mass of the bound atomic nucleus.

Δm = Z m_p + (A - Z) m_n - M_nucleus u (Atomic Mass Units) or MeV/c²
Nuclear & Particle Physics

Mean Life

The average expected lifetime of a radioactive nucleus before undergoing radioactive decay.

τ = 1 / λ = t_½ / ln(2) ≈ 1.443 t_½ Seconds or Years
Nuclear & Particle Physics

Mesons

Hadronic subatomic particles composed of one valence quark and one valence antiquark bound by gluons.

Quark Content: q q̄, Spin = 0, 1, Baryon Number = 0 Composite Boson Class
Nuclear & Particle Physics

Muon

A second-generation elementary charged lepton with a mass approximately 207 times greater than an electron.

m_μ ≈ 105.66 MeV/c², τ_μ ≈ 2.2 μs, Spin = ½ MeV/c² (Mass Energy)