230 lines
6.4 KiB
Plaintext
230 lines
6.4 KiB
Plaintext
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GLOSSARY OF HIGH ENERGY WEAPONS TERMS
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ALPHA PARTICLE
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Helium nuclei. Not very penetrating. Stopped by epidermis.
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BECQUEREL
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Symbol: Bq
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1 disintegration/second. 1 Curie = 3.7 x 10^10 Bq. Unit of activity. Things
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with small half-lives have the biggest activity.
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BERYLLIUM
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Symbol: Be
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Element 4 with atomic weights b/w 6 and 11. A neutron reflector and neutron
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source. Has low thermal neutron absorption cross section. Has high neutron
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scattering cross section. Be has the highest number of atoms / c.c. than any
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other element. Absorbs high energy neutrons to become a neutron source.
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Used in the core of boosted fission devices.
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number 4
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symbol Be
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name Beryllium
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density 1.85
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heatVapor 73.9
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heatFusion 2.8
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elecConduct .25
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thermalConduct .38
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specificHeat .45
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weight 9.012182
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boilPoint 2472 deg C
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meltPoint 1289 deg C
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thermalConduct 2.01
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specificGrav 1.848 (20 deg C)
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valence 2
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configuration [He] 2s^2
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BETA PARTICLE
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Electrons, more penetrating than alphas. Can go through air, but are stopped
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by protective clothing.
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BETA DECAY
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Radioactive emission of an electron (beta particle) from a nucleus.
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BOOSTING
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Injecting the hollow core of a fissile weapon with T and D gases, soon after
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core implosion and fission initiation. Done to improve efficiency - there is
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a synergy b/w fission and fusion reactions.
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DEUTERIUM
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Symbol: D
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Heavy hydrogen isotope. Atomic number of 1, atomic weight of 2.
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i.e. nucleus has 1 proton, 1 neutron. Deuterium is not radioactive. Found as
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1/6000 of tap water. Nuclear fuel used in fusion into helium.
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GAMMA RAY
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Short wavelength electromagnetic radiation, extremely high energy light. Highly
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penetrating. Can go through inches of steel or lead. Need metres of lead for
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protection.
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GRAY
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Symbol: Gy
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SI unit for 1 Joule deposited/kilogram of flesh. 1 Rad = 0.01 Gy.
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ION
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Atom stripped of its electron cloud.
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INERTIAL CONFINEMENT
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A technique which compresses a mass of fusion fuel, thereby increasing the
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probability and rate of fusion. Abbreviation: ICF
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LEVITATION
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Method of separating the pusher and core so that there is an air gap in
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between. This lets the pusher develop momentum (and maximises impulse) as
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the pusher implodes.
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LITHIUM
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Symbol: Li
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Element 3 with atomic weights b/w 5 and 9. Used as a fusion fuel. It is usually
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compounded with deuterium to form Li-6D. Neutron bombardment transforms Li
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into T. THe T fuses with the D to release He nuclei, more neutrons, and
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radiation.
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LITHIUM 6 DEUTERIDE
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Called "Liddy" by Igor Kurchatov its discoverer, it serves as a dry fuel in
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secondaries.
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MEGATON
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1,000,000 tons of TNT. 1 ton of TNT = 4.184^9 J. [From 'A Physicist's
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Desk Reference', Ed. Herbert L. Anderson]
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NEUTRON
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Chargeless particle, and highly penetrating due to this property.
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It hardly interacts, and hence is difficult to block. Can only be
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blocked by metres of concrete or deep water. Neutron absorption by
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nuclei can make the nuclei radioactively unstable.
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NUCLEON
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A proton or neutron in a nucleus.
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ORALLOY
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Symbol: Oy
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Oak Ridge Alloy, about 93.5% U-235.
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PLUTONIUM
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Sumbol: Pu
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Element 94 with atomic weights b/w 232 and 246. Radioactive, man-made. Half-
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life is 24,360yrs, and it alpha decays. Pu-239 metal is used in weapons.
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number 94
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symbol Pu
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name Plutonium
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weight [244]
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boilPoint 3230 deg C
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meltPoint 640 deg C
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heatVapor
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heatFusion
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elecConduct
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thermalConduct 0.0670
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specificHeat
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specificGrav (alpha modification) 19.84 (25 deg C)
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valence 3, 4, 5, or 6
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configuration [Rn] 5f^6 7s^2
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RAD
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Radiation Absorbed Dose, unit for measuring specific amounts of radiation
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absorbed by human tissue.
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REM
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Radiation Equivalent Man, measures biological damage done to tissue by
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specific amounts of radiation. The type of radiation is taken into account.
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For beta and gamma radiation, 1 RAD = 1 REM. For neutrons and alphas,
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1 RAD = up to 20 REM, depending on particle energy. Low rad dosages are
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a few REM, high doses are > 100 REM. High doses give rise to immediate
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radiation sickness: hypodermal bleeding, hair loss, sickness. Under 25 REM,
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no short term effects are observed. In the long term, however, it will
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lead to greater possibility for cancer and genetic abnormality in offspring.
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ROENTGEN
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Symbol: R or r
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Unit for measuring ionising radiation in air. Replaced by the Coulomb/kg.
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1 roentgen = 2.58 x 10^-4 C/kg.
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SHAKE
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10 ns
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SIEVERT
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Symbol: Sv
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SI unit defined as Gy x Quality_factor. 1 REM = 0.01 Sv. Unit for dose
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equivalent. QF of gammas and betas is 1, QF for alphas is 20. So absorbed dose
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of 1 Gy of gammas = 1 Sv, whereas the dose of 1 Gy of alphas is 20 Sv.
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Background rad is 0.03 Sv.
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SPARKPLUG
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Oy or Pu-239 rod used as a fission igniter in a fusion cell. When compressed
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and bombarded at one end by neutrons, it fissions. It heats the surrounding
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compressed fusion fuel, and provides neutrons for T generation.
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TRITIUM
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Symbol: T
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Heavy hydrogen isotope. Atomic number of 1, atomic weight of 3.
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i.e. nucleus has 1 proton, 2 neutrons. Tritium is radioactive, with a half-
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life of 12.3yrs. Not found in Nature. Produced via neutron bombardment of Li.
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URANIUM
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Symbol: U
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Element 92 with atomic weights b/w 227 and 240. The U-235 and U-238 isotopes
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are used in weapons. U-238 produces Pu-239 via neutron bombardment in reactors.
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A heavy, silvery-white metal which is pyrophoric (spontaneous ignition) when
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finely divided. Highly corrosive to most materials when in metallic vapour
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form. Melting point: 1132 C. Boiling point: 3818 C. Has 6 electrons in
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highest shell, contributing to a complicated chemistry for U.
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number 92
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symbol U
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name Uranium
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weight 238.0289
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boilPoint 4134 deg C
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meltPoint 1135 deg C
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heatVapor
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heatFusion
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elecConduct
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thermalConduct 0.275
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specificHeat
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specificGrav ~18.95
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valence 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6
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configuration [Rn] 5f^3 6d 7s^2
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URANIUM HEXAFLUORIDE
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Symbol: UF6
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Used in separation techniques since there is only 1 isotope of F. Molecular
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weight is 349 or 352, corresponding to U-235 and U-238 respectively. Highly
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symmetrical moelcule. Fluorines arranged arround central U atom, along the
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3 perpendicular axes. UF6 is highly reactive, especially against water and
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many organic compounds. Strong fluorinating agent. Corrosive to most metals.
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Only Ni or Al and their alloys are suitable for UF6 handling in separators.
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Colorless solid at room temp. At room pressure, it sublimes at 56.5 C. cf
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dry ice.
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1994
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