However fusion is combining light atoms for example two hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium to form the heavier helium. Fusion vs fission in fission energy is gained by splitting apart heavy atoms for example uranium into smaller atoms such as iodine caesium strontium xenon and barium to name just a few. Whether the reaction is exothermic or not it is dependent on the binding energy of resulting nuclei.
This is the main difference. Nuclear fusion is a nuclear reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei collide at a very high energy and fuse together into a new nucleus. Nuclear fission is a nuclear reaction in which the nucleus of an atom splits into smaller parts lighter nuclei.
Nuclear fusion on the other hand works by forcing atoms together. Conventional nuclear reactors harness energy from a process called fission which involves splitting the nucleus of a large atom. You can check out the difference between the two in this infographic below.
They yield millions of times more energy than other sources through nuclear reactions. Fission and fusion are two physical processes that produce massive amounts of energy from atoms. Simply put fission is the division of one atom into two and fusion is the combination of two lighter atoms into a larger one.
Both fission and fusion are nuclear processes by which atoms are altered to create energy but what is the difference between the two. The foundation of nuclear energy is harnessing the power of atoms. Fusion in contrast occurs when two or more smaller atoms fuse together creating a larger heavier atom.
In fission an atom is split into two or more smaller lighter atoms. Nuclear fusion and nuclear fission are different types of reactions that release energy due to the presence of high powered atomic bonds between particles found within a nucleus.
