ScienceAugust 16, 2026

photonuclear

foh-toh-NOO-klee-er

Definition

Relating to or involving nuclear reactions that are induced by or involve high-energy photons.

Etymology

Derived from the Greek word 'phōs' (light) combined with the Latin 'nucleus' (kernel or nut), reflecting the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and the atomic nucleus.

In the news

The article describes the use of photonuclear collisions—collisions between photons and nuclei—at the RHIC facility to gather evidence about how baryon number is stored within protons.

Proton collisions hint that gluons, not quarks, carry baryon number

Read the full article ↗

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