What Is Atomic Reaction?

An atomic reaction is a process in which two nuclei or nuclear particles collide, to produce different atomic nuclei. Atomic reactions emit excess energy in the form of high energy electromagnetic radiation (gamma rays), heat and lighter nuclear particles which are hazardous. The energy comes from the mass that is converted into energy according to the mass-energy relation. The resultant nuclei will be less massive than the constituent particles.

Atomic reactions are of three types, namely fusion, fission and spallation. In the fusion process two lighter atomic nuclei combines to form a larger nucleus releasing nuclear binding energy. In fission reactions, heavier nuclei split into lighter ones along with the emission of radiation and energy. Spallation is when a highly energy particle knock out lighter fragments from atomic nuclei.

The nuclear energy released in an atomic reaction is unusually high and is therefore tapped to build atomic reactors or unleashed in atomic bombs.