- #1
Drizzy
- 210
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Homework Statement
My book is saying that if a nucleus has too many neutrons beta minus decay or electron capture is going to happen. The nucleus wants to get rid of a neutron so it is going to send out one electron and an antineutrino that originally comes from the neutron. But what I don't understand is electron capture. The nucleus is going to capture an electron and together with a proton make a neutron. So that means we will have one more neutron than in the beginning. Why does the nucleus make another neutron if it already has too many?