Course: Nuclear Physics

Presented by Kailash Sharma

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 EXERCISE-I
Part-I
(Single Correct type Questions)
Section-A
(Nucleus size, Stability and Binding Energy)
1. Let u denote one atomic mass unit. One atom of an element of mass number.
A has mass exactly equal to Au
(A) for any value of A
(B) only for A = 1
(C) Only for A = 12
(D) for any value of A provided the atom is stable

2. The surface area of a nucleus varies with mass number A as

(A) A2/3 (B) A1/3 (C) A (D) None

4 7 12 14
3. The binding energies of the nuclei 2 He , 3 Li , 6 C , & 7 N , are 28, 52, 90, 98
MeV respectively. Which of these is most stable ?
4 7 12 14
(A) 2 He (B) 3 Li (C) 6 C (D) 7 N

4. Binding energy per nucleon vs. mass number curved for nuclei is shown in the
figure. W, X, Y and Z are four nuclei indicated on the curve. The process that
would release energy is

(A) Y → 2Z (B) W → X + Z (C) W → 2Y (D) X → Y + Z

5. Consider the nuclear reaction

X200 → A110 + B90
If the binding energy per nucleon for X, A and B is 7.4 MeV, 8.2. MeV and 8.2
MeV respectively, what is the energy released?
(A) 200 MeV (B) 160 MeV (C) 110 MeV (D) 90 MeV

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 6. The binding energy per nucleon for C12 is 7.68 MeV and that for C13 is
7.5 MeV. The energy required to remove a neutron from C13 is
(A) 5.34 MeV (B) 5.5 MeV (C) 9.5 MeV (D) 9.34 MeV

7. The binding energies of nuclei X and Y are E 1 and E2 respectively. Two atoms
of X fuse to give one atom of Y and an energy Q is released. Then:
(A) Q = 2E1 – E2 (B) Q = E2 – 2E1 (C) Q = 2E1 + E2 (D) Q = 2E2 + E1

8. The binding energies of the atom of elements A & B are E a & Eb respectively.
Three atoms of the element B fuse to give one atom of element A. This fusion
process is accompanied by release of energy. Then Ea, Bb are related to each
other as
(A) Ea + e = 3Eb (B) Ea = 3Eb
(C) Ea − e = 3Eb (D) Ea + 3Eb e = 0

9. The rest mass of the deuteron, 12 H , is equivalent to an energy of 1876 MeV, the
rest mass of a proton is equivalent to 939 MeV and that of a neutron to 940
MeV. A deuteron may disintegrate to a proton and a neutron if it:
(A) emits a -ray photon of energy 2 MeV
(B) captures a -ray photon of energy 2 MeV
(C) emits a -ray photon of energy 3 MeV
(D) captures -ray photon of energy 3 MeV

Section-B
(Radioactivity)
10. The number of  and – emitted during the radioactive decay chain starting
from 226 206
88 Ra and ending at 82 Pb is

(A) 3 and 6– (B) 4 and 5– (C) 5 and 4– (D) 6 and 6–

11. In the uranium radioactive series the initial nucleus is 92U238, and the final
nucleus is 82Pb206. When the uranium nucleus decays to lead, the number of
 –particles emitted is.. and the number of -particles emitted…
(A) 6, 8 (B) 8, 6 (C) 16, 6 (D) 32, 12

12. A certain radioactive nuclide of mass number m x disintegrates, with the

emission of an electron and  radiation only, to give second nuclide of mass
number my. Which one of the following equation correctly relates m x and my?
(A) my = mx + 1 (B) my = mx – 2 (C) my = mx – 1 (D) my = mx

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13. In an -decay the Kinetic energy of  particle is 48 MeV and Q-value of the
reaction is 50 MeV. The mass number of the mother nucleus is: (Assume that
daughter nucleus is in ground state)
(A) 96 (B) 100 (C) 104 (D) none of these

14. A radioactive source in the form of a metal sphere of diameter 3.2  10–3 m
emits -particle at a constant rate of 6.25  1010 particle/sec. The source is
electrically insulated and all the -particle are emitted from the surface. The
potential of the sphere will rise to 1 V in time
(A) 180  sec (B) 90  sec (C) 18  sec (D) 9  sec

Section-C
(Statistical Law of Radioactivity)
15. The half-life of 131I is 8 days Given a sample of 131I at time t = 0, we can assert
that:
(A) no nucleus will decay before t = 4 days
(B) no nucleus will decay before t = 8 days
(C) all nuclei will decay before t = 16 days
(D) a given nucleus may decay at any time after t = 0

16. Two radioactive material A1 and A2 have decay constants of 10λ0 and λ0. If
initially they have same number of nuclei, the ratio of number of their
undecayed nuclei will be (1/e) after a time
1 1 1
(A) (B) (C) (D) 1
λ0 9λ 0 10λ 0

17. 90% of a radioactive sample is left undecayed after time t has elapsed. What
percentage of the initial sample will decay in a total time 2t:
(A) 20% (B) 19% (C) 40% (D) 38%

18. In a radioactive element the fraction of initial amount remaining after its mean
life time is
1 1 1 1
(A) 1 − (B) (C) (D) 1 −
e e2 e e2

19. Activity of a radioactive substance is R1 at time t1 and R2 at time t2(t2 > t1).
R2
Then the ratio is:
R1
t2 − λ ( t1 +t2 )  t1 − t2  λ ( t1 − t2 )
(A) (B) e (C) e   (D) e
t1  λ 

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20. A radioactive material of half-life T was produced in a nuclear reactor at
different instants, the quantity produced second time was twice of that
produced first time. If now their present activities are A1 and A2 respectively
then their age difference equals:
T A A1 T A A2
(A) ln 1 (B) T ln (C) ln 2 (D) T ln
ln2 A 2 A2 ln2 2A1 2A1

21. A particular nucleus in a large population of identical radioactive nuclei did

survive 5 half lives of that isotope. Then the probability that this surviving
nucleus will survive the next half life:
(A) 1/32 (B) 1/5 (C) 1/2 (D) 1/10

22. The activity of a sample reduces from A0 to A0 / 3 in one hour. The activity
after 3 hours more will be
A0 A0
(A) A 0 (B) (C) A 0 (D)
3 3 9 9 3 27

23. The half-life of substance X is 45 years, and it decomposes to substance Y. A

sample from a meteorite was taken which contained 2% of X and 14% of Y by
quantity of substance. If substance Y is not normally found on a meteorite,
what is the approximate age of the meteorite?
(A) 270 years (B) 135 years (C) 90 years (D) 45 years

24. The activity of a sample of radioactive material is A 1 at time t1 and A2 at time t2

(t2 > t1). Its mean life is T.
A1 − A 2
(A) A1t1 = A2t2 (B) = constant
t 2 − t1
( t1 -t2 )/T ( t1 -Tt2 )
(C) A2 = A1 e (D) A2 = A1 e
25. A radioactive substance is being produced at a constant rate of 10 nuclei/s.
1
The decay constant of the substance is sec–1. After what time the number of
2
radioactive nuclei will become 10? Initially there are no nuclei present. Assume
decay law holds for the sample.
1
(A) 2.45 sec (B) log (2) sec (C) 1.386 sec (D) sec
ln(2)

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26. The radioactivity of a sample is R1 at time T1 and R2 at time T2. If the half life of
the specimen is T. Number of atoms that have disintegrated in time (T 2 – T1) is
proportional to
(A) (R1T1 – R2T2) (B) (R1 – R2) T
(C) (R1 – R2)/T (D) (R1 – R2) (T1 – T2)

27. At time t = 0, N1 nuclei of decay constant λ1 & N2 nuclei of decay constant λ2

are mixed. The decay rate of the mixture is:
−( λ +λ )t  N1  −( λ1 − λ2 )t
(A) N1N2e 1 2 (B) +  e
N
 2

(
(C) + N1λ1e
− λ1t
+N2 λ 2e − λ2t ) (D) +N1λ1N2 λ 2e
−( λ1 +λ 2 )t

28. A radioactive nuclide can decay simultaneously by two different processes

which have decay constants λ1 and λ2. The effective decay constant of the
nuclide is , then:
1
(A) λ = λ1 + λ2 (B) λ = (1 + 2)
2
1 1 1
(C) = + (D) λ = λ1λ 2
λ λ1 λ 2

29. In a certain nuclear reactor, a radioactive nucleus is being produced at a

constant rate =1000/s. The mean life of radionuclide is 40 minutes. At steady
state, the number of radionuclide will be
(A) 4  104 (B) 24  104 (C) 24  105 (D) 24  106

30. In the above question 29, if there were 20  105 radionuclide at t = 0, then the
graph of N v/s t is

(A) (B)

(C) (D)

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31. The half life of a neutron is 800 sec. 108 neutrons at a certain instant are
projected from one space station towards another space station, situated 3200
km away, with a velocity 2000m/s. Their velocity remains constant during the
journey. How many neutrons reach the other station?
(A) 50  106 (B) 25  106 (C) 80  105 (D) 25  105

32. A certain radioactive sample is observed to undergo 100000 decays in 10 sec.

In which of the following cases can we say that decay rate during this time
interval is approximately constant and equal to 1000 dps.
(A) t1/2 = 10 sec (B) tmean = 10 sec
(C) t1/2 >> 10 sec (D) t1/2 << 10 sec

33. Half life of radium is 1620 years. How many radium nuclei decay in 5 hours in
5 gm radium? (atomic weight of radium = 223)
(A) 9.1  1012 (B) 3.23  1015 (C) 1.72  1020 (D) 3.3  1017

Section-D
(Nuclear fission and fusion reaction)
34. If each fission in a U235 nucleus 200 MeV, how many fissions must occurs per
second to produce a power of 1 KW
(A) 1.325  1013 (B) 3.125  1013 (C) 1.235  1013 (D) 2.135  1013
35. A star initially has 1040 deuterons. It produces energy via, the processes
1H2 + 1H2 → 1H3 + p & 1H2 + 1H2 + 1H3 → 2He3 + n
If the average power radiated by the star is 1016W, the deuteron supply of the
star is exhausted in a time of the order of:
(A) 106 sec (B) 108 sec (C) 1012 sec (D) 1016 sec

36. Assuming that about 20 MeV of energy is released per fusion reaction
1H2 + 1H3 → 0n1 + 2He4,
then the mass of 1H2 consumed per day in a fusion reactor of power 1 MW will
approximately be
(A) 0.001 g (B) 0.1 g (C) 10.0 g (D) 1000 g
37. The power obtained in a reactor using U235 disintegration is 1000 kW. The mass
decay of U235 per hour is
(A)10 µg (B) 20 µg (C) 40 µg (D) 1 µg

38. If 200 MeV energy is released in the fission of a single nucleus of 92U235. How
many fissions must occur per second to produce a power of 1 kW?
(A) 3.125 × 1013 (B) 6.250 × 1013 (C) 1.525 × 1013 (D) None of these
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 Part-II
Previous Year’s JEE Main Questions (2019-2020)
1. At a given instant, say t = 0, two radioactive substances A and B have equal
activities. The ratio RB / RA of their activities after time t itself decays with time
t as e–3t. [If the half-life of A is m2, the half-life of B is:
(A) ln2/2 (B) 2ln2 (C) ln2/4 (D) 4ln2
[JEE Main-2019]

2. Using a nuclear counter the count rate of emitted particles from a radioactive
source is measured. At t = 0 it was 1600 counts per second and t = 8 seconds
it was 100 counts per second. The count rate observed, as counts per second,
at t = 6 seconds is close to :
(A) 150 (B) 360 (C) 200 (D) 400
[JEE Main-2019]

3. Consider the nuclear fission

Ne20→ 2He4 + C12
Given that the binding energy/nucleon of Ne20, He4 and C12 are, respectively,
8.03 MeV, 7.07 MeV and 7.86 MeV, identify the correct statement:
(A) 8.3 MeV energy will be released
(B) energy of 12.4 MeV will be supplied
(C) energy of 11.9 MeV has to be supplied
(D) energy of 3.6 MeV will be released
[JEE Main-2019]

4. An alpha-particle of mass m suffers 1-deminsional elastic collision with a

nucleus at rest of unknown mass. It is scattered directly backwards losing,
64% of its initial kinetic energy. The mass of the nucleus is:
(A) 2 m (B) 3.5 m (C) 1.5 m (D) 4 m
[JEE Main-2019]

5. In a radioactive decay chain, the initial nucleus is 23290Th. At the end there are
6-particles and 4-particles with are emitted. If the end nucleus is AZX, A and
Z are given by :
(A) A = 208; Z = 80 (B) A = 202; Z = 80
(C) A = 208; Z = 82 (D) A = 200; Z = 81
[JEE Main-2019]

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6. The ratio of mass densities of nuclei of 40Ca and 16O is close to:
(A) 0.1 (B) 1 (C) 2 (D) 5
[JEE Main-2019]

7. Two radioactive materials A and B have decay constants10λ & λ, respectively.

If initially they have the same number of nuclei, then the ratio of the number
of nuclei, then the ratio of the number of nuclei of A to that of B will be 1/e
after a time
(A) 1/9λ (B) 1/11λ (C) 1/10λ (D) 11/10λ
[JEE Main-2019]

8. Two radioactive substances A and B have decay constants 5λ and λ

respectively. At t = 0, a sample has the same number of the two nuclei. The
time taken for the ratio of the number of nuclei to become 1/e 2 will be:
(A) 1/4λ (B) 2/λ (C) 1/λ (D) 1/2λ
[JEE Main-2019]

9. The activity of a radioactive sample falls from 700 s –1 to 500 s–1 in 30 minutes.
Its half life is close to :
(A) 62 min (B) 66 min (C) 72 min (D) 52 min
[JEE Main-2020]

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 EXERCISE-II
Part-I
(Multiple Correct type Questions)
Section-A
1. When a nucleus with atomic number Z and mass number A undergoes a
radioactive decay process:
(A) both Z and A will decrease, if the process is  decay
(B) Z will decrease but A will not change, if the process is +
(C) Z will decrease but A will not change, if the process is – decay
(D) Z and A will remain unchanged, if the process is γ decay

2. When the atomic number A of the nucleus increases

(A) initially the neutron-proton ratio is constant = 1
(B) initially neutron-proton ratio increases and later decreases
(C) initially binding energy per nucleon increases and later decreases
(D) the binding energy per nucleon increases when the neutron-proton ratio
increases

3. Let mp be the mass of a proton, mn the mass of a neutron, M1 the mass of a

20 40
10 Ne nucleus and M2 the mass of a 20 Ca nucleus. Then
(A) M2 = 2M1 (B) M2 > 2M1
(C) M2 < 2M1 (D) M1 < 10(mn + mp)

4. The decay constant of a radioactive substance is 0.173 (years)-1. Therefore:

(A) Nearly 63% of the radioactive substance will decay in (1/0.173) year
(B) Half life of the radioactive substance is (1/0.173) year
(C) One-fourth of the radioactive substance will be left after nearly 8 years
(D) All the above statements are true

5. A nitrogen nucleus 7N14 absorbs a neutron and can transform into lithium
nucleus 3Li7 under suitable conditions, after emitting:
(A) 4 protons and 4 neutrons
(B) 4 protons and 3 neutrons
(C) 1 alpha particles and 2 gamma particles
(D) 1 alpha particle, 4 protons and 2 negative beta particles

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6. The instability of the nucleus can be due to various causes. An unstable
nucleus emits radiations if possible to transform into less unstable state. Then
the cause and the result can be
(A) a nucleus of excess nucleons is  active
(B) an excited nucleus of excess protons is – active
(C) an excited nucleus of excess protons is + active
(D) an nucleus of excess neutrons is – active

7. In -decay, the Q-value of the process is E. Then

(A) K.E. of a -particle cannot exceed E.
(B) K.E. of anti neutrino emitted lies between Zero and E.
(C) N/Z ratio of the nucleus is altered
(D) Mass number (A) of the nucleus is altered

8. When the nucleus of an electrically neutral atom undergoes a radioactive

decay process, it will remain neutral after the decay if the process is:
(A) decay (B) – decay (C) γ decay (D) K-capture

Section-B
[MATRIX TYPE]
1. In the following, column I lists some physical quantities & the column II gives
approx energy values associated with some of them. Choose the appropriate
value of energy from column II for each of the physical quantities in column I
and write the corresponding letter A, B, C etc. against the number (i), (ii), (iii),
etc. of the physical quantity in the answer book. In your answer, the sequence
of column I should be maintained

Column-I Column-II
(i) Energy of thermal neutrons (A) 0.025 eV
(ii) Energy of X-rays (B) 0.5 eV
(iii) Binding energy per nucleon (C) 3 eV
(iv) Photoelectric threshold of metal (D) 20 eV
(E) 10 keV
(F) 8 MeV

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 PART-II
(Subjective type Questions)
1. The binding energies per nucleon for deuteron (1H2) and helium (2He4) are 1.1
MeV and 7.0 MeV respectively. The energy released when two deuterons fuse to
form a helium nucleus (2He4) ____.

2. A radioactive decay counter is switched on at t = 0. A -active sample is present

near the counter. The counter registers the number of  - particles emitted by
the sample. The country registers 1 × 105 -particles at t = 36 s and 1.11 × 105
-particles at t = 108 s. Find T1/2 of this sample.

40
3. An isotopes of Potassium 19 K has a half life 1.4 × 109 year and decays to Argon
40
18 Ar which is stable.
(i) Write down the nuclear reaction representing this decay
(ii) A sample of rock taken from the moon contains both potassium and argon
in the ratio 1/7. Find age of rock.

4. A radioactive sample emits n -particles in 2 sec. In next 2 sec it emits 0.75 n

-particles, what is the mean life of the sample?

5. At t = 0, a sample is placed in a reactor. An unstable nuclide is produced at a

constant rate R in the sample by neutron absorption. This nuclide – decays
with half life τ. Find the time required to produce 80% of the equilibrium
quantity of this unstable nuclide.

6. Suppose that the Sun consists entirely of hydrogen atom and releases the
energy by the nuclear reaction, 411 H → 24 He with 26 MeV of energy released. If
the total output power of the Sun is assumed to remain constant 3.9 × 1026 W,
find the time it will take to burn all the hydrogen. Take the mass of the Sun as
1.7 × 1030 kg.

7. The positron is a fundamental particle with the same mass as that of the
electron and with a charge equal to that of an electron but of opposite sign.
When a positron and an electron collide, they may annihilate each other. The
energy corresponding to their mass appears in two photons of equal energy.
Find the wavelength of the radiation emitted.
[Take: mass of electron = (0.5/C2)MeV and hC = 1.24 × 10–12 MeV.m where h is
the Plank’s constant and C is the velocity of light in air]

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 8. When two deuterons (1H2) fuse to from a helium nucleus 2He4, 23.6 MeV energy
is released. Find the binding energy of helium if it is 1.1 MeV for each nucleon
of deutrim.

9. Consider the following reaction :

2H1 + 2H1 = 4He2 + Q.

Mass of the deuterium atom = 2.0141 u; Mass of the helium atom = 4.0024 u.
This is a nuclear _____ reaction in which the energy Q is released is ______ MeV.

10. A nucleus at rest undergoes a decay emitting -particle of de-Broglie

wavelength, λ = 5.76 × 10–15 m. If the mass of the daughter nucleus is 223.610
amu and that of the -particle is 4.002 amu. Determine the total kinetic energy
in the final state. Hence obtain the mass of the parent nucleus in amu.
(1 amu = 931.470 MeV/c2)

11. Nuclei of a radioactive element A are being produced at a constant rate . The
element has a decay constant λ. At time t = 0, there are N0 nuclei of the
element.
(a) Calculate the number N of nuclei of A at time t
(b) If  = 2N0λ, calculate the number of nuclei of A after one half life of A & also
the limiting value of N as t → .

12. A small bottle contains powdered beryllium Be & gaseous radon which is used
as a source of -particles. Neutrons are produced when -particles of the radon
react with beryllium. The yield of this reaction is (1/4000) i.e. only one
-particles of the radon react with beryllium. The yield of this reaction is
(1/4000) i.e. only one -particle out of 4000 induces the reaction. Find the
amount of radon (Rn222) originally introduced into the source, if it produces
1.2  106 neutrons per second after 7.6 days. [T1/2 of Rn = 3.8 days]

13. At a given instant there are 25% undecayed radio-active nuclei in a sample.
After 10 sec the number of undecayed nuclei remains to 12.5%. Calculate.
(i) mean-life of the nuclei and
(ii) The time in which the number of undecayed nuclear will further reduce to
6.25% of the reduced number.

14. Many stars collapse under gravitational pull into a neutron star when most of
the hydrogen is used up the entire star is then a tightly packed ball of neutrons
with the density of nuclear matter. Assume that a star of mass 2  1032 kg,
radius 5.5  108 m collapses into a neutron star. It has a time period of rotation
of 108 sec. about its axis initially. What is its rotation period (in sec.) after
collapse. (Take R0 – 1.1 fm, 1 amu = 1.6  10–27 kg)

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15. The element Curium 248
96 Cm has a mean life of 10
13 seconds. Its primary decay

modes are spontaneous fission and  decay, the former with a probability of 8%
and the latter with a probability of 92%. Each fission releases 200 MeV of
energy. The masses involved in  decay are as follows: 248
96 Cm = 248.072220u,

244 4
Pu = 244.064100u & 2 He = 4.002603u. Calculate the power output from a
94

sample of 1020 Cm atoms. (1 u = 931 MeV/c2)

16. A + meson of negligible initial velocity decays to a + (muon) and a neutrino.

With what kinetic energy (in e V) does the muon move? (The rest mass of
neutrino can be considered zero. The rest mass of the + meson is 150 MeV and
the rest mass of the muon is 100 MeV.) Take neutrino to behave like a photon
Take 2 = 1.41.

EXERCISE-III
JEE ADVANCED Previous Year’s Questions
1. Given a sample of Radium-226 having half-life of 4 days. Find the probability, a
nucleus disintegrates within 2 half lives.
(A) 1 (B) 1/2 (C) 3/4 (D) 1/4
[JEE 2006]

2. Match the following Columns

Column-I Column-II
(A) Nuclear fusion (P) Converts some matter into
energy
(B) Nuclear fission (Q) Generally occurs for nuclei
with low atomic number
(C) -decay (R) Generally occurs for nuclei
with higher atomic number
(D) Exothermic nuclear reaction (S) Essentially proceeds by weak
nuclear forces
[JEE 2006]

3. In the options given below, let E denote the rest mass energy of a nucleus and
n a neutron. The correct options is
(A) E ( 236
92 U ) > E ( 53 I ) + E ( 39 Y ) + 2E ( n )
137 97
(B) E ( 236
92 U ) < E ( 53 I ) + E ( 39 Y ) + 2E ( n )
137 97

(C) E ( 236
92 U ) < E ( 56 Ba ) + E ( 36 Kr ) + 2E ( n )
140 94
(D) E ( 236
92 U ) = E ( 56 Ba ) + E ( 36 Kr ) + 2E ( n )
140 94

[JEE 2007]

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4. Assume that the nuclear binding energy per nucleon (B/A) versus mass
number (A) is as shown in the figure. Use this plot to choose the correct
choice(s) given below:

(A) Fusion of two nuclei with mass numbers lying in the range of 1 < A < 50 will
release energy
(B) Fusion of two nuclei with mass number lying in the range of 51 < A < 100
will release energy
(C) Fission of a nucleus lying in the mass range of 100 < A < 200 will release
energy when broken into two equal fragments
(D) Fission of a nucleus lying in the mass range of 200 < A < 260 < will release
energy when broken into two equal fragments
[JEE 2008]

5. A radioactive sample S1 having an activity of 5Ci has twice the number of

nuclei as another sample S2 which has an activity of 10Ci. The half lives of S1
and S2 can be:
(A) 20 ears and 5 years, respectively
(B) 20 years and 10 years, respectively
(C) 10 years each
(D) 5 years each
[JEE 2008]

Paragraph for Question Nos. 6 to 8

Scientists are working hard to develop nuclear fusion reactor. Nuclei of heavy
hydrogen, 12 H, known as deuteron and denoted by D, can be thought of as a
candidate for fusion reactor. The D-D reaction is 12 H+12 H →23 He + N + energy. In
the core of fusion reactor, a gas of heavy hydrogen is fully ionized into deuteron
nuclei and electrons. This collection of 12 H nuclei and electrons is known as
plasma. The nuclei move randomly in the reactor core and occasionally come
close enough for nuclear fusion to take place. Usually, the temperatures in the

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 reactor core are too high and no material wall can be used to confine the
plasma. Special techniques are used which confine the plasma for a time t 0
before the particles fly away from the core. If n is the density (number/volume)
of deuterons, the product nt0 is called Lawson number. In one of the criteria, a
reactor is termed successful if Lawson number is greater than 5  1014 s/cm3.
It may be helpful to use the following:
e2
Boltzmann constant k = 8.6  10-5 eV/K; = 1.44  10-9 eVm.
4πε 0

6. In the core of nuclear fusion reactor, the gas becomes plasma because of
(A) Strong nuclear force acting between the deuterons
(B) Coulomb force acting between the deuterons
(C) Coulomb force acting between deuteron-electron pairs
(D) The high temperature maintained inside the reactor core
[JEE 2009]

7. Assume that two deuteron nuclei in the core of fusion reactor at temperature T
are moving towards each other, each with kinetic energy 1.5kT, when the
separation between them is large enough to neglect Coulomb potential energy.
Also neglect any interaction from other particles in the core. The minimum
temperature T required for them to reach a separation of 4  10-15 m is in the
range
(A) 1.0  109 K < T < 2.0  109 K (B) 2.0  109 K < T < 3.0  109 K
(C) 3.0  109 K < T < 4.0  109 K (D) 4.0  109 K < T < 5.0  109 K
[JEE 2009]

8. Result s of calculations for four different designs of a fusion reactor using D-D
reaction are given below. Which of these is most promising based on Lawson
criterion?
(A) Deuteron density = 2.0  1012 cm-3, confinement time = 5.0  10-3 s
(B) Deuteron density = 8.0  1014 cm-3, confinement time = 9.0  10-1 s
(C) Deuteron density = 4.0  1023 cm-3, confinement time = 1.0  10-11 s
(D) Deuteron density = 1.0  1024 cm-3, confinement time = 4.0  10-12 s
[JEE 2009]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 16 | P a g e

 9. Column-II gives certain system undergoing a process. Column-I suggests
changes in some of the parameters related to the system. Match the statements
in Column-I to the appropriate process (es) from Column-II.

Column-I Column-II
(A) The energy of the system is (P) System: A capacitor, initially
increased uncharged
Process: It is connected to a
battery
(B) Mechanical energy is provided (Q) System: A gas in an adiabatic
to the system which is container fitted with an adiabatic
converted into energy of piston
random motion of its parts Process: The gas is compressed by
pushing the piston
(C) Internal energy of the system (R) System: A gas in a rigid container
is converted into its Process: The gas gets cooled due to
mechanical energy surrounding it
(D) Mass of the system is (S) System: A heavy nucleus, initially
decreased at rest
Process: The nucleus fissions into
two fragments of nearly equal
(t) System: A resistive wire loop.
Process: The loop is placed in a
time varying magnetic field
perpendicular to its plane.

[JEE 2009]

10. To determine the half life of the radioactive element, a student plots a graph of
dN ( t ) dN ( t )
ln versus t. Here is the rate of radioactive decay at time t. If the
dt dt
number of radioactive nuclei of this element decreases by a factor of p after
4.16 years, the value of p is

[JEE 2010]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 17 | P a g e

11. The activity of a freshly prepared radioactive sample is 10 10 disintegrations per
second whose mean life is 109 s. The mass of an atom of this radioisotope is
10-25kg. The mass (in mg) of the radioactive sample is
[JEE 2011]

Paragraph for Question Nos. 12 to 13

The -decay process, discovered around 1900, is basically the decay of a
neutron (n). In the laboratory, a proton (p) and an electron (e−) are observed as
the decay products of the neutron. Therefore, considering the decay of a
neutron as a two-body decay process, it was predicted theoretically that the
kinetic energy of the electron should be a constant. But experimentally, it was
observed that the electron kinetic energy has a continuous spectrum.
Considering a three-body decay process, i.e. n → p + e- + ve , around 1930,
Pauli explained the observed electron energy spectrum. Assuming the anti-
neutrino ( ve ) to be massless and possessing negligible energy, and the neutron
to be at rest, momentum and energy conservation principles are applied. From
this calculation, the maximum kinetic energy of the electron is 0.8  106 eV.
The kinetic energy carried by the proton is only the recoil energy.

12. If the anti-neutrino had a mass of 3eV/c2 (where c is the speed of light) instead
of zero mass, what should be the range of the kinetic energy, K, of the electron?
(A) 0 ≤ K ≤ 0.8  106 eV (B) 3.0 eV ≤ K ≤ 0.8  106 eV
(C) 3.0 eV ≤ K < 0.8  106 eV (D) 0 ≤ K < 0.8  106 eV
[JEE 2012]
13. What is the maximum energy of the anti-neutrino?
(A) Zero (B) Much less than 0.8  106 eV
(C) Nearly 0.8  106 eV (D) Much larger than 0.8  106 eV
[JEE 2012]
Paragraph for Question Nos. 14
The mass of a nucleus ZA X is less than the sum of the masses of (A-Z) number
of neutrons and Z number of protons in the nucleus. The energy equivalent to
the corresponding mass difference is known as the binding energy of the
nucleus. A heavy nucleus of mass M can break into two light nuclei of masses
m1 and m2 only if (m1 + m2) < M. Also two light nuclei of masses m3 and m4 can
undergo complete fusion and form a heavy nucleus of mass M’ only if
(m3 + m4) > M’. The masses of some neutral atoms are given in the table below:
1
1 H 1.007825u 2
1 H 2.014102u 3
1 H 3.016050u 4
2 He 4.002603u
6
3 Li 6.015123u 7
3 Li
7.016004u 70
30 Zn 69.925325u 82
34
81.916709u
Se
152
64 Gd 151.919803u 82
206
Pb 205.974455u 209
83 Bi
208.980388u 84
210
Po 209.982876u

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 18 | P a g e

14. The kinetic energy (in ke V) of the alpha particle, when the nucleus 210
84 Po at rest
undergoes alpha decay, is
(A) 5319 (B) 5422 (C) 5707 (D) 5818
[JEE Advanced-2013]

15. Match the List I of the nuclear processes with List II containing parent nucleus
and one of the end products of each process and then select the correct answer
using the codes given below the lists:

Column-I Column-II
(P) Alpha decay (1) 15
8 O →15
7 N +....

(Q) - decay (2) 238

92 U →234
90 Th +....

(R) Fission (3) 185

83 Bi →184
82 Pb +....

(S) Proton emission (4) 239

94 Pu →140
57 La +....

(A) P-4, Q-2, R-1, S-3 (B) P-1, Q-3, R-2, S-4
(C) P-2, Q-1, R-4, S-3 (D) P-4, Q-3, R-2, S-1
[JEE Advanced-2013]

16. A nuclear power plant supplying electrical power to a village uses a radioactive
material of half life T years as the fuel. The amount of fuel at the beginning is
such that the total power requirement of the village is 12.5% of the electrical
power available from the plant at that time. If the plant is able to meet the total
power needs of the village for a maximum period of nT years, then the value of
n is
[JEE Advanced- 2015]

17. An electron in an excited state of Li2+ ion has angular momentum 3h/2. The
de Broglie wavelength of the electron in this state is pa0 (where a0 is the Bohar
radius). The value of p is
[JEE Advanced-2015]

18. For a radioactive material, its activity A and rate of change of its activity R
dN dA
defined as A = − and R = , where N(t) is the number of nuclei at time t.
dt dt
Two radioactive sources P (mean life ) and Q (mean life 2) have the same
activity at t = 0. Their rates of change of activities at t = 2 are Rp and RQ,
R n
respectively. If P = , then the value of n is
RQ e
[JEE Advanced-2015]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 19 | P a g e

19. Match the nuclear processes given in Column I with the appropriate option(s)
in Column II.

Column-I Column-II
(A) Nuclear fusion (P) Absorption of thermal neutrons
by 235
92 U

(B) fission in a nuclear reactor (Q) 60

27Co nucleus
(C) -decay (R) Energy production in stars via
hydrogen conversion to helium
(D) -ray emission (S) Neutrino emission

[JEE Advanced-2015]

20. A fission reaction is given by 236 92 U →54 Xe +38 Sr + x + y , where x and y are two
140 94

particles. Considering 236

92 U to be at rest, the kinetic energies of the products

are denoted by KXe, KSr, Kx (2MeV) and Ky (2MeV), respectively. Let the binding
energies per nucleon of 236
92 U, 54 Xe and 38 Sr be 7.5 MeV, 8.5 MeV and 8.5 MeV,
140 94

respectively. Considering different conservation laws, the correct option(s) is

(are)
(A) x = n, y = n, KSr = 129 MeV, KXe = 86 MeV
(B) x = p, y = e-, KSr = 129 MeV, KXe = 86 MeV
(C) x = p, y = n, KSr = 129 MeV, KXe = 86 MeV
(D) x = n, y = n, KSr = 86 MeV, KXe = 129 MeV
[JEE Advanced-2015]

5 B having a mass 12.014 u undergoes -decay to 6 C. 6 C has an

21. The isotope 12 12 12

excited state of the nucleus ( 12

6 C * ) at 4.041 MeV above its ground state. If 5
12
B

6 C * , the maximum kinetic energy of the -particle in units of MeV is

decays to 12
(1u = 931.5 MeV/c2, where c is the speed of light in vacuum).
[JEE Advanced-2016]

22. An accident in a nuclear laboratory resulted in deposition of a certain amount

of radioactive material of half-life 18 days inside the laboratory. Tests revealed
that the radiation was 64 times more than the permissible level required for
safe operation of the laboratory. What is the minimum number of days after
which the laboratory can be considered safe for use?
(A) 64 (B) 90 (C) 108 (D) 120
[JEE Advanced-2016]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 20 | P a g e

23. The electrostatic energy of Z protons uniformly distributed throughout a
spherical nucleus of radius R is given by
3 Z ( Z −1) e
2
E=
5 4πε 0R
The measured masses of the neutron, 11 H, 15
7 N and 8 are 1.008665u, 1.007825u,
15

15.000109u and 15.003065u, respectively. Given that the radii of both

7 N and 8 O nuclei are same, 1 u = 931.5 MeV/c
15 15 2 (c is the speed of light) and

e2/(40) = 1.44 MeV fm. Assuming that the difference between the binding
energies of 15
7 N and 8 O is purely due to the electrostatic energy, the radius of
15

either of the nuclei is (lfm = 10 -15m)

(A) 2.85 fm (B) 3.03 fm (C) 3.42 fm (D) 3.80 fm
[JEE Advanced-2016]

24. 131I an isotope on Iodine that  decays to an isotope of Xenon with a half-life of
8 days. A small amount of a serum labelled with 131I is injected into blood of a
person. The activity of the amount of 131I injected was 2.4  105 Becquerel (Bq).
It is known that the injected serum will get distributed uniformly in the blood
stream in less than half an hour. After11.5 hours, 2.5 ml of blood is drawn
from the person’s body, and gives an activity of 115 Bq. The total volume of
blood in the person’s body, in liters in approximately (you may use e x  1 + x
for |x| << 1 and ln2  0.7).
[JEE Advanced-2017]

25. In a radioactive decay chain, 232 212

90 Th decays to 82 Pb nucleus. Let Nα and Nβ be
the number of α and β-particles, respectively emitted in this decay process.
Which of the following statements is (are) true ?

(A) Nα = 5 (B) Nα = 6 (C) Nβ = 2 (D) Nβ = 4

[JEE Advanced- 2018]

26. In an experiment the initial number of radioactive nuclei is 3000. It is found

that 1000 ± 40 nuclei decayed in the first 1.0 s. For |x| << 1, ln(1 + x) = x up to
first power in x. The error Δλ, in the determination of the decay constant λ, in
s–1, is
(A) 0.04 (B) 0.03 (C) 0.02 (D) 0.01
[JEE Advanced-2018]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 21 | P a g e

 40 40
27. In a radioactive sample 19 K nuclei either decay into stable 20 Ca nuclei with
40
decay constant 4.5×10–10 per year or into stable 18 Ar nuclei with decay
40
constant 0.5×10–10 per year. Given that in this sample all the stable 20 Ca and
40 40
18 Ar nuclei are produced by the 19 K nuclei only. In time t × 109 years, if the
40 40 40
ratio of the sum of stable 20 Ca and 18 Ar nuclei to the radioactive 19 K nuclei
99, the value of t will be [Given: ln 10 = 2.3]
(A) 9.2 (B) 1.15 (C) 4.6 (D) 2.3
[JEE Advanced- 2019]

226
28. Suppose a 88 Ra nucleus at rest and in ground state undergoes α-decay to
222
86 Rn nucleus in its excited state. The kinetic energy of the emitted α particle is
found to be 4.44 MeV. 222
86 Rn nucleus then goes to is ground state by γ-decay.
The energy of the emitted γ photon is ________keV.
[Given: atomic mass of 226 222
88 Ra = 226.005 u, atomic mass of 86 Rn = 222.000 u,
atomic mass of α particle = 4.000 u, 1 u = 931 Me V/c2, c is speed of light]
[JEE Advanced-2019]

29. A particle of mass m moves in circular orbits with potential energy V(r) = 𝐹𝑟,
where F is a positive constant and r is its distance from the origin. Its energies
are calculated using the Bohr model. If the radius of the particle’s orbit is
denoted by R and its speed and energy are denoted by v and E, respectively,
then for the nth orbit (here h is the Planck’s constant)
(A) R  n1/3 and v  n2/3 (B) R  n2/3 and v  n1/3
1/3 1/3
3  n2h2F 2   n2h2F 2 
(C) E =   (D) E = 2  
2  4π2m  2
 4π m 
[JEE Advanced-2020]

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 22 | P a g e

 ANSWER KEY
EXERCISE-I
Part-I
Section-A to D

1. C 2. A 3. C 4. C 5. B 6. A 7. B 8. C 9. D 10. C
11. B 12. D 13. B 14. C 15. D 16. B 17. B 18. C 19. D 20. C
21. C 22. B 23. B 24. C 25. C 26. B 27. C 28. A 29. C 30. C
31. B 32. C 33. B 34. B 35. C 36. B 37. C 38. A

Part-II
Previous Year’s Question (2019-2020)

1. C 2. C 3. C 4. D 5. C 6. B 7. A 8. D 9. A

EXERCISE-II
PART-I
Section-A
1. ABD 2. AC 3. CD 4. AC 5. AD 6. ACD 7. ABC 8. CD

Section-B
1. (i)-A (ii)-E; (iii)-F; (iv)-C

PART-II
1. 23.6 MeV 2. (T1/ 2 = 10.8 sec)

40 40
→18 Ar ++1 e0 + v
3. (i) 19 K ⎯⎯ (ii) 4.2×109 years

2  ln5 
4. 1.75n=N0 (1 − e −4λ ), 6.95 sec. 5. t =  τ
4  l n2 
ln  
3
6. 8/3  1018 sec 7. 2.48 ×10–12 m 8. 28 MeV

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 23 | P a g e

9. Fusion, 24 10. (a) 6.25MeV, (b) 227.62 amu

1 3N
11. (a) N = [α(1 − e− λt )+ λΝ0e− λt ] (b) 0 , 2N0
λ 2

12. 3.3 × 10-6 g 13. (i) t1/2 = 10 sec, tmeans = 14.43 s (ii) 40 seconds

14. 1 15.  33.298μW 16. 9 × 106

EXERCISE-III
JEE ADVANCED Previous Year’s Questions

1. C 2. (A)-PQ; (B)-PR; (C)-SP; (D)-PQR 3. A 4. BD 5. A 6. D

7. A 8. B 9. (A)-p, q, t (B)-q, (C)-s; (D)-s 10. 8 11. 1 12. D 13. C
14. A 15. C 16. 3 17. 2 18. 2 19. (A)-R or RT; (B)-P, S; (C)-Q, T; (D)-R
20. A 21. 8 or 9 22. C 23. C 24. 5 25. A 26. C 27. A 28. 135
29. BC

KAILASH SHARMA (REF-KAILASH10) 24 | P a g e