What do protons and neutrons, the nuclear particles, do with respect to atomic stability?
1 Answer
Mar 9, 2016
They participate in the strong nuclear force which binds atomic NUCLEI together
Explanation:
The strong nuclear force is a strong (duh!), SHORT RANGE force, that binds the nucleons (protons and neutrons) together in atomic nuclei. This force is strong enough at short ranges to overcome proton-proton repulsion such that a net attractive force results. You might get a more sophisticated answer in the Physics forum, because this force is one about which chemists generally don't have much of a clue.
Why should protons repel each other in the nucleus?
