Helion (chemistry)
Encyclopedia
A helion is a short name for the naked nucleus
of helium
, a doubly positively charged helium ion. In practice, helion refers to the stable helium-3
nucleus, in opposition to the other stable nucleus helium-4
, which is usually referred to as an alpha particle
. The (helium-3) helion consists of two protons and one neutron
.
According to CODATA, the mass of a helion particle is 5.006 411 92(25) × 10−27 kg.
Atomic nucleus
The nucleus is the very dense region consisting of protons and neutrons at the center of an atom. It was discovered in 1911, as a result of Ernest Rutherford's interpretation of the famous 1909 Rutherford experiment performed by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden, under the direction of Rutherford. The...
of helium
Helium
Helium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
, a doubly positively charged helium ion. In practice, helion refers to the stable helium-3
Helium-3
Helium-3 is a light, non-radioactive isotope of helium with two protons and one neutron. It is rare on Earth, and is sought for use in nuclear fusion research...
nucleus, in opposition to the other stable nucleus helium-4
Helium-4
Helium-4 is a non-radioactive isotope of helium. It is by far the most abundant of the two naturally occurring isotopes of helium, making up about 99.99986% of the helium on earth. Its nucleus is the same as an alpha particle, consisting of two protons and two neutrons. Alpha decay of heavy...
, which is usually referred to as an alpha particle
Alpha particle
Alpha particles consist of two protons and two neutrons bound together into a particle identical to a helium nucleus, which is classically produced in the process of alpha decay, but may be produced also in other ways and given the same name...
. The (helium-3) helion consists of two protons and one neutron
Neutron
The neutron is a subatomic hadron particle which has the symbol or , no net electric charge and a mass slightly larger than that of a proton. With the exception of hydrogen, nuclei of atoms consist of protons and neutrons, which are therefore collectively referred to as nucleons. The number of...
.
According to CODATA, the mass of a helion particle is 5.006 411 92(25) × 10−27 kg.