A neutron in a reactor makes an elastic collision head on with a lithium atom that is initially at rest. (The

Question

A neutron in a reactor makes an elastic collision head on with a lithium atom that is initially at rest. (The mass of the lithium nucleus is about 7 times that of the neutron.)

(a) What fraction of the neutron's kinetic energy is transferred to the lithium nucleus?

(b) If the neutron's initial kinetic energy is 1.7 *10^-13 J, find its final kinetic energy and the kinetic energy of the lithium nucleus after the collision.

Answer 1

Elastic  collisions preserve both momentum and kinetic energy. Check out the section title "Equations" in:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elastic_col...