Question

An alpha particle collides with an oxygen nucleus, initially at rest. The alpha particle is scattered at an angle of 60.9° above its initial direction of motion, and the oxygen nucleus recoils at an angle of 51.9° on the opposite side of that initial direction. The final speed of the nucleus is 1.32 105 m/s. In atomic mass units, the mass of an alpha particle is 4.0 u. The mass of an oxygen nucleus is 16 u.
(a) Find the final speed of the alpha particle.
m/s
(b) Find the initial speed of the alpha particle.
m/s

Answer 1

Duplicate post; answered elsewhere