Abstract—The neutron separation energy is the minimum energy required to remove a neutron from a nucleus. It is the difference between the rest mass energy of the nucleus with one less neutron and the actual rest mass energy of the nucleus. Considering Einstein’s mass-energy equivalence relation and using the contributions of the liquid-drop model, we first analyze the various terms that build up the Bethe-von Weizsäcker formula. Using this, we estimate the binding energy of a nucleus which in-turn can be used to calculate the neutron separation energies. This was done to obtain the separation energies of different isotopes of Oxygen-8 and Nickel-28. Using the relationship between binding energy and separation energy, the single as well as double neutron separation energies for transition isotopes of Oxygen-8 and Nickel-28 were calculated. We then progressed on to investigate the co-relation of Separation Energies with the Q-Value for a nuclear reaction and discuss its possible consequences for stellar fusion process.

Index Terms—Bethe-von Weizsäcker formula, binding energy, nickel-28, oxygen-8, separation energy

Abhinav Mishra and Tanuj Gupta are with School of Mechanical Engineering, KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India (email: abhinav.1993mishra@gmail.com).
Bidhubhusan Sahu is with School of Applied Sciences, KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, India.

Cite: Abhinav Mishra, Tanuj Gupta, Bidhubhusan Sahu, "Estimation of Nuclear Separation Energy and Its Relation with Q Value," International Journal of Applied Physics and Mathematics vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 17-24, 2016.