How can you tell if a reaction will happen?

This will depend on the conservation laws. In the same way that a numerical equation must be equal on either side, a reaction must have the same amount of certain properties on each side. The properties that are always conserved are baryon number, charge and lepton number. Lepton number is split into 3 types, electron, muon and tau, and so the number of each type must be conserved, and not necessarily the total number of leptons.

The last property is strangeness, which is always conserved except when the particles involved interact via the weak interaction. The weak interaction is carried by the W and Z gauge bosons, and can be identified if the reaction involves neutrinos. The strong interaction will involve only baryons, and the electromagnetic interaction will ususally involve photons; this information can be used to verify strangeness as a conserved property.

Answered by Chloe E. Physics tutor

1784 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

Why does current split between branches of a parallel circuit, but voltage remains the same for each branch?


Explain the difference between forced vibration and resonance in an oscillating object.


How would our Sun's luminosity change if we increased its temperature 3 times?


Given the rate of thermal energy transfer is 2.7kW, the volume of the water tank is 4.5m^3, the water is at a temperature of 28oC, density of water is 1000kgm-3 & c=4200Jkg-1K-1. Calculate the rise in water temperature that the heater could produce in 1hr


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2024

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy