What is a nuclear reaction?

Nuclear reactions can occur in nature or in nuclear reactors; in the latter case, the typical nuclear reaction is the decay of uranium-235. A nuclear reaction is defined as a reaction that modifies the mass of the nucleus.

Alpha decay is a process that lowers the number of protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus of superheavy elements (those with atomic numbers greater than 83) in the periodic table.

A neutron is converted into a proton and an electron in an element with a high neutron to proton ratio. This process occurs in the atom's nucleus, which can only hold protons and neutrons. The electron that is produced is expelled from the nucleus as a beta particle.

Unlike the other forms of radioactive decay, gamma decay lowers the energy level of the atom by one rather than altering the number of protons and neutrons in the atom's nucleus.

A good illustration of alpha decay is the conversion of uranium-235 into thorium-231:

The decay of uranium-235 into neptunium-235 is an illustration of beta decay:

An illustration of technetium-99m's gamma decay into technetium-99 is as follows:

In Tc-99m, the'm' represents for metastable, which indicates that an excited state of an atom, ion, or atomic nucleus is present.

A nuclear reaction is a process in which the nucleus of an atom is altered, resulting in a change in its composition or energy. This can involve the splitting of a heavy nucleus (fission) or the combining of two light nuclei (fusion).