Nuclear Physics

Radioactive Decay

A sequence of figures (each represent 1 half life) illustrating the radioactive decay of a sample. Initially 2500 markers are “parents”. Each half life, there is a 50% chance a marker decays. After a number of half lifes, no parents remain. A plot showing the exponential decay follows.

download MP4: decay.mp4

Hot CNO Cycle

An animation of the changing reaction rates with temperature for the reactions and nuclei involved in the CNO and hot-CNO cycle. As the temperature is increased, eventually the proton-captures become faster than the beta-decays, putting us in the hot-CNO regime.

download MP4: hotcno.mp4