The Rutherford-Harkins-Landau-Chadwick Key–III. Fission Interpreted by Nuclear Chemistry

Throughout the past century, scientists introduced various models of atomic nuclei, each bringing unique insights yet burdened with inherent limitations. Despite their contributions, no existing model–visualizing protons as red spheres and neutrons as blue–has provided a straightforward framework to predict or explain the outcomes of fusion and fission reactions. A wealth of experimental data gathered over decades in nuclear physics calls for a renewed organization and interpretation. Might there be a hidden principle, a key that unlocks a profound understanding of the phenomena occurring within femtometer dimensions? This work seeks to revisit the turning point in nuclear physics defined by Pauli and Fermi’s neutron and neutrino theory in 1934. We draw inspiration from earlier nuclear models developed by great visionaries such as Rutherford, Harkins, Landau, and Chadwick. Their pre-1934 theories offer a foundation for reexamining the nucleus as the composition of protons and neutrons composed from a proton and an electron. We introduce a set of guiding principles for nuclear structure, which reimagine how the nucleus operates and interacts. This revised perspective offers a gateway to reevaluating long-standing assumptions and forging new insights into nuclear behavior. The implications of this model will be demonstrated across three interconnected papers, each contributing to a more comprehensive view of the nuclear world.