The question asks about the energy equivalent of the rest mass of an electron. This concept is fundamental in physics and is directly explained by Einstein's famous mass-energy equivalence principle.
Energy Equivalent Principle
According to Albert Einstein's special theory of relativity, mass and energy are interchangeable. This relationship is expressed by the famous equation:
\[ E = mc^2 \]
Where:
- \(E\) represents the energy.
- \(m\) represents the mass.
- \(c\) represents the speed of light in a vacuum.
This equation tells us that a certain amount of mass, even when at rest, possesses an equivalent amount of energy. The energy associated with the rest mass of a particle is often referred to as its rest mass energy.
Electron Rest Mass Calculation
To calculate the energy equivalent of the rest mass of an electron, we need the following standard values:
- Rest mass of an electron (\(m_e\)): \(9.109 \times 10^{-31}\) kg
- Speed of light in vacuum (\(c\)): \(2.998 \times 10^8\) m/s
- Conversion factor from Joules to electron volts (eV): \(1 \text{ eV} = 1.602 \times 10^{-19}\) J
- Conversion factor from electron volts to Mega electron volts (MeV): \(1 \text{ MeV} = 10^6 \text{ eV}\)
Step-by-step Calculation:
- Calculate \(c^2\):
\[ c^2 = (2.998 \times 10^8 \text{ m/s})^2 \]
\[ c^2 \approx 8.988 \times 10^{16} \text{ m}^2/\text{s}^2 \]
- Calculate the energy \(E\) in Joules (J) using \(E = m_e c^2\):
\[ E = (9.109 \times 10^{-31} \text{ kg}) \times (8.988 \times 10^{16} \text{ m}^2/\text{s}^2) \]
\[ E \approx 8.187 \times 10^{-14} \text{ J} \]
- Convert the energy from Joules to electron volts (eV):
\[ E_{\text{eV}} = \frac{8.187 \times 10^{-14} \text{ J}}{1.602 \times 10^{-19} \text{ J/eV}} \]
\[ E_{\text{eV}} \approx 5.110 \times 10^5 \text{ eV} \]
- Convert the energy from electron volts (eV) to Mega electron volts (MeV):
\[ E_{\text{MeV}} = \frac{5.110 \times 10^5 \text{ eV}}{10^6 \text{ eV/MeV}} \]
\[ E_{\text{MeV}} \approx 0.511 \text{ MeV} \]
Therefore, the energy equivalent of the rest mass of an electron is approximately 0.511 MeV.
Comparing this calculated value with the given options:
- 1.02 MeV
- 0.51 MeV
- 2.04 MeV
- 931.5 MeV
The calculated value of approximately 0.511 MeV is very close to 0.51 MeV, which is one of the options.