Book edition 2nd Edition

Author(s) Randy Harris

Pages 633 pages

ISBN 9780805303087

Answers without the blur.

Just sign up for free and you're in.

Short Answer

A ball rebounds elastically from the floor. What doesthis situation share with the ideas of momentum conservation discussed in connection with pair production?

In pair production, the higher mass nucleus alters the momentum of the incoming photon significantly during the collision but absorbs negligible kinetic energies during the collision. Hence, the laws of energy and momentum conservations hold.

See the step by step solution

Step by Step Solution

TABLE OF CONTENTS :

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Step 1: Concept used

Pair production is a phenomenon in which a photon of sufficiently high energy interacting with a matter forms an electron and positron in the vicinity of a nucleus. The laws of energy and momentum conservations hold only in the vicinity of the nucleus.

Step 2: Energy conservation

When a ball hits the floor and rebounds back elastically,,there is a negligible loss of kinetic energy of the ball. So, the initial kinetic energy of the ball is the same as the final kinetic energy. The momentum of the floor upon collision is comparable to the momentum of the falling ball. But, the kinetic energy transferred by the ball to the floor is negligible due to a huge difference in the mass of the ball and the floor. Hence, the laws of energy conservation and momentum conservation hold.

Step 3: Conservation of momentum

Now, when a photon having very high energy interacts with the matter, an electron and a positron are produced with equal momentum and kinetic energies. The nucleus behaving like the floor absorbs negligible kinetic energy from the incoming photon, which acts like the falling ball. So, the initial energy of the photon is equal to the combined energies of the electron and positron. Also, the higher mass nucleus significantly alters the momentum of the photon and thus, momentum is also conserved.

Find Study Materials for

Create Study Materials

Select your language

Modern Physics

Answers without the blur.

Short Answer

A ball rebounds elastically from the floor. What doesthis situation share with the ideas of momentum conservation discussed in connection with pair production?

Step by Step Solution

Step 1: Concept used

Step 2: Energy conservation

Step 3: Conservation of momentum

Most popular questions for Physics Textbooks

Want to see more solutions like these?

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

Select your language

Modern Physics

Answers without the blur.

Short Answer

A ball rebounds elastically from the floor. What doesthis situation share with the ideas of momentum conservation discussed in connection with pair production?

Step by Step Solution

Step 1: Concept used

Step 2: Energy conservation

Step 3: Conservation of momentum

Most popular questions for Physics Textbooks

Want to see more solutions like these?

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

Work Energy and Power

Radiation

Astrophysics

Physics of Motion

Scientific Method Physics

Fluids

Torque and Rotational Motion

Nuclear Physics

Fields in Physics

Measurements

Space Physics

Electricity

Physical Quantities and Units

Medical Physics

Electrostatics

Further Mechanics and Thermal Physics

Mechanics and Materials

Engineering Physics

Energy Physics

Force

Particle Model of Matter

Waves Physics

Magnetism

Modern Physics

Atoms and Radioactivity

Dynamics

Electricity and Magnetism

Conservation of Energy and Momentum

Fundamentals of Physics

Kinematics Physics

Circular Motion and Gravitation

Linear Momentum

Rotational Dynamics

Oscillations

Translational Dynamics

Geometrical and Physical Optics

Thermodynamics

Magnetism and Electromagnetic Induction

Electromagnetism

Electric Charge Field and Potential

Turning Points in Physics