A neutron bouncing off a heavy nucleus loses speed. If it instead bounces off a light nucleus it loses
A)less speed.
B)more speed.
C)the same amount of speed.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

When a neutron bounces off a heavy nucleus, it loses speed because the heavy nucleus has a strong attractive force between its protons and the neutron, which slows it down. However, when it bounces off a light nucleus, the attractive force is weaker, and the neutron does not lose as much speed. Therefore, the neutron bouncing off a light nucleus loses more speed than when it bounces off a heavy nucleus, making option B the correct choice.

A Neutron Bouncing Off a Heavy Nucleus Loses Speed