[1]Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power.
[2]Described in this booklet.
[3]Magnetohydrodynamics.
[4]The Kelvin temperature scale starts with zero at absolute zero
instead of at the freezing point of water. Therefore, °K = °C + 273;
°K = ⁵/₉ (°F + 460).
[5]Termed _valence_ or _conduction_ electrons, these are responsible for
chemical properties, bonds with other atoms, and the conduction of
electricity.
[6]See the companion Understanding the Atom booklet, _Power from
Radioisotopes_.
[7]Discovered by Thomas Edison in 1883.
[8]An electron volt is equal to the kinetic energy acquired by an
electron accelerated through a potential difference of 1 volt. It is
equal to 1.6 × 10⁻¹⁹ joule.
[9]In outer space, waste heat must be radiated away. The rate at which
heat is radiated is proportional to the fourth power of T_c
(Stefan-Boltzmann law).
[10]The newton and the weber are mks (meter-kilogram-second) units.
[11]An angstrom unit (A) is a unit of distance measurement equal to
10⁻¹⁰ meter.
[12]Dielectric materials are nonconductors such as are those used
between the plates of a condenser to increase its electrical
capacity.
[13]The Curie point is the temperature at which a material’s crystalline
structure radically changes and becomes less orderly.
[14]Ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism are very similar. The equations
describing these phenomena are almost identical except that
capacitance is replaced by its magnetic analog, inductance, and so
on.
This booklet is one of the “Understanding the Atom” Series. Comments are
invited on this booklet and others in the series; please send them to
the Division of Technical Information, U. S. Atomic Energy Commission,
Washington, D. C. 20545.
Published as part of the AEC’s educational assistance program, the
series includes these titles:
_Accelerators_
_Animals in Atomic Research_
_Atomic Fuel_
_Atomic Power Safety_
_Atoms at the Science Fair_
_Atoms in Agriculture_
_Atoms, Nature, and Man_
_Careers in Atomic Energy_
_Computers_
_Controlled Nuclear Fusion_
_Cryogenics, The Uncommon Cold_
_Direct Conversion of Energy_
_Fallout From Nuclear Tests_
_Food Preservation by Irradiation_
_Genetic Effects of Radiation_
_Index to the UAS Series_
_Lasers_
_Microstructure of Matter_
_Neutron Activation Analysis_
_Nondestructive Testing_
_Nuclear Clocks_
_Nuclear Energy for Desalting_
_Nuclear Power and Merchant Shipping_
_Nuclear Power Plants_
_Nuclear Propulsion for Space_
_Nuclear Reactors_
_Nuclear Terms, A Brief Glossary_
_Our Atomic World_
_Plowshare_
_Plutonium_
_Power from Radioisotopes_
_Power Reactors in Small Packages_
_Radioactive Wastes_
_Radioisotopes and Life Processes_
_Radioisotopes in Industry_
_Radioisotopes in Medicine_
_Rare Earths_
_Reading Resources in Atomic Energy_
_Research Reactors_
_SNAP, Nuclear Space Reactors_
_Sources of Nuclear Fuel_
_Synthetic Transuranium Elements_
_The Atom and the Ocean_
_The Chemistry of the Noble Gases_
_The First Reactor_
_Whole Body Counters_
_Your Body and Radiation_
A single copy of any one booklet, or of no more than three different
booklets, may be obtained free by writing to: