In reply to Eric Walker's message of Sun, 17 Mar 2013 22:56:07 -0700: Hi, [snip] >On Sun, Mar 17, 2013 at 2:50 PM, <[email protected]> wrote: > > >> BTW there is no potential barrier here. The proton and the electron carry >> opposite charges, so they are attracted to one another, rather than >> repelled. >> > >I take it that when physicists refer to a "potential barrier," they mean >specifically an electrostatic potential barrier, and not simply an energy >threshold that must be overcome? > >Eric
A barrier usually implies an impediment that gets in the way of a reaction that would otherwise release energy. However the formation of a neutron from a proton and an electron does not release energy, it consumes it. Regards, Robin van Spaandonk http://rvanspaa.freehostia.com/project.html
