Fission is what is currently used in nuclear reactors today, and it basically consists of atoms breaking apart and releasing energy due to their bonds being broken.
How is fusion such an efficient energy source? I would imagine that to create atoms, large amounts of energy would have to be pumped in to make bonds.
In: Physics
Visual example I use on my students: The two forces at work inside an atom are the nuclear force (pulls stuff together, but has a limit) and the electrostatic force (pushes like charges apart, has NO limit).
Make a big, loose ball with both hands. This is a heavy atom. It’s not held together very well, because it has a lot of positive charges fighting each other to get apart and it’s ‘attractive’ nuclear force is maxed out. Now pull your hands apart and tighten them into fists. These small atoms have less positive charge pulling them apart, so they’re a lot ‘tighter’.
Now make two loose balls with separate hands. These are light atoms. They don’t have a lot of nucleons, so very little nuclear force holds them together. Now clap them together. The heavier atom you get by joining the lighter atoms has more nucleons, so more attraction. It ALSO has more positive charges to push it apart, but not enough.
(Note: I usually ignore fusion, so the second example doesn’t get a lotta screen time. The dividing line is an atomic mass of about 60, so iron, cobalt, nickel, etc)
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