In nuclear reactions, information about the nuclei that take place in the reaction and the nuclei that are produced can be written out in the an equation form. When looking at equations like this, how can you identify a reaction as a fission reaction?

Question

a nucleus with a large mass will be on the right side, and there will be electrons in the equation
a nucleus with a large mass will be on the left side and there will be electrons in the equation
a nucleus with a large mass will be on the right side and there will be neutrons in the equation
a nucleus with a large mass will be on the left side of the equation and there will be neutrons in the equation

Answer 1

In a fission reaction, a heavy nucleus splits into two or more smaller nuclei, along with the release of energy and often free neutrons.

Based on this, the correct way to identify a fission reaction from the options provided would be:

a nucleus with a large mass will be on the left side of the equation and there will be neutrons in the equation.

In a typical fission reaction, the process starts with a heavy nucleus (like uranium-235 or plutonium-239) on the left side, and this nucleus absorbs a neutron, causing it to become unstable and split into smaller nuclei (fission products) along with the release of additional neutrons that can go on to induce further fission reactions.