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why should it take significantly more energy to move a beam of alpha particles than a beam of beta minus particles

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Beta particles are electrons.

Each alpha particle is a bundle of two protons and two neutrons.
Each proton and each neutron has the same mass as roughly
1,840 electrons.

So one alpha particle has the mass of almost 7,400 beta particles.
No wonder it takes more energy to influence its motion !

User Mohinder
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