13 Jun 2026

Nuclear Physics Standard Problems

Standard competitive exam problems in nuclear physics with answer key.

nuclear-physics gate-2024 csir-net-2023 jest-2022

These are original standard problems based on frequently tested competitive-exam patterns.

Q: Nuclear radius is commonly parameterized as
A: $R=R_0A$
B: $R=R_0A^{1/3}$
C: $R=R_0/A$
D: $R=R_0A^2$
ANSWER: B
NOTE: GATE 2024 style
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Q: Alpha decay changes mass number and atomic number by
A: $A\to A-4$, $Z\to Z-2$
B: $A\to A-2$, $Z\to Z-4$
C: $A\to A+4$, $Z\to Z+2$
D: $A$ unchanged, $Z\to Z-1$
ANSWER: A
NOTE: CSIR-NET 2023 style
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Q: The deuteron bound state has spin-parity
A: $0^+$
B: $1^+$
C: $1^-$
D: $2^+$
ANSWER: B
NOTE: JEST 2022 style
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Q: The binding energy per nucleon is maximum near
A: hydrogen
B: helium
C: iron/nickel region
D: uranium only
ANSWER: C
NOTE: GATE 2021 style
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Q: Beta-minus decay emits
A: positron and neutrino
B: electron and antineutrino
C: alpha particle only
D: gamma ray only
ANSWER: B
NOTE: CSIR-NET 2020 style
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Q: The liquid drop model explains nuclear binding using
A: volume, surface, Coulomb, asymmetry and pairing terms
B: only electron shells
C: only gravitational attraction
D: molecular bonding
ANSWER: A
NOTE: GATE style
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Q: Gamma decay usually changes
A: mass number only
B: atomic number only
C: neither $A$ nor $Z$
D: both $A$ and $Z$ by two
ANSWER: C
NOTE: CSIR-NET style
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Q: A magic number corresponds to a closed shell of
A: atomic electrons only
B: nucleons
C: photons
D: phonons
ANSWER: B
NOTE: JEST style

Problem Sheet Standard MCQs

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