Coulomb Barrier

The Coulomb barrier refers to the energy barrier that charged particles, like protons, must overcome to get close enough to each other for nuclear reactions to occur. This happens because positively charged particles repel each other due to electric forces. In processes like nuclear fusion, such as in the sun, high temperatures and pressures provide enough energy for these particles to overcome the Coulomb barrier, allowing them to collide and merge, releasing vast amounts of energy. Understanding this concept is crucial in fields like nuclear physics and energy production.