An example of an alternative conception in a popular science book:
"All these fundamental constituents of the physical world are interdependent and can combine in various ways. Thus a neutron can go into a proton by emitting a negative electron and a neutrino (neutron ➞ proton + neg. electron + neutrino); and a proton can go back into a neutron by emitting a positive electron [positron] and a neutrino (proton ➞ neutron + pos. electron + neutrino)."
George Gamow (1961) One, Two, Three…Infinity. Facts and speculations of science, Revised Edition, Dover Publications, Inc., New York.
A 'free' neutron outside the nucleus can decay into a proton (with a half-life of about 14 minutes). This process releases energy (and mass) such that the proton is lighter than the neutron, and energy (and mass) is carried away by the fast-moving electron (beta-particle) and neutrino.
A 'free' proton has not been observed to decay, and protons either do not decay, or, at least, if they do decay, do so only with a very, very long half-life. However, a proton could not decay into a neutron as converting a proton to a neutron would require a large input of energy (equivalent to that 'lost' in the decay of a neutron).
[Protons and neutrons in nucleus are considered to be inter-converted, but NOT with the release of electrons and neutrinos that would remove energy from the nucleus.]
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It is odd that a physicist such as Gamow (who admittedly was writing a long time ago) would have suggested this scheme as clearly it could be iterated:
- neutron ➞ proton + energy released;
- proton (formed in step 1) ➞ neutron+ energy released;
- neutron (formed in step 2) ➞ proton + energy released;
- proton (formed in step 3) ➞ neutron+ energy released;
- neutron (formed in step 4) ➞ proton + energy released;
- proton (formed in step 5) ➞ neutron+ energy released;
- etcetera, ad infinitum…
That is, this would be contrary to conservation of energy, and would suggest the basis for a kind of perpetual motion machine!
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