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Article
Nuclear molecule
Article By:
Scheid, Werner Institut für Theoretische Physik, Justus-Liebig-Universität, Giessen, Germany.
Last reviewed:June 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.459200
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An exotic nuclear configuration that can be classified as a special cluster configuration. Clusters are conglomerates of nucleons, such as alpha particles or carbon-12 (12C) nuclei. Nuclear molecules consist of nuclei (clusters) that touch each other at their surfaces and keep their individuality. In the shell model, a nuclear molecule is described as being built by two (or more) nuclei with two kinds of nucleons; most nucleons belong to the individual nuclei, but a small number of outer nucleons binds the system in a molecule, quite analogously to the outer electrons in a chemical molecule (Fig. 1). See also: Alpha particles; Atomic nucleus; Molecular structure and spectra; Nuclear shell model and magic numbers
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