Chapter 13.3 Flashcards
What is the energy given off when an atomic nucleus breaks up or undergoes a change?
Nuclear radiation
What is any substance that is unstable and likely to produce radiation?
Radioactive
What is the process in which atoms of a radioactive substance are changed into atoms of another substance?
Radioactive decay
What is the decay rate of a substance?
Half-life
What occurs when an unstable atom ejects a clump of two protons and two neutrons?
Alpha decay
What occurs when a neutron in an atom’s nucleus changes into a proton, emitting an electron?
Beta decay
What is it called when an excited nucleus releases energy without a change in the number of protons or neutrons?
Gamma decay
What are electromagnetic waves of extremely high frequency?
Gamma radiation
What are the three major forms of radiation (alpha, beta, and gamma) considered because they have enough energy to knock electrons loose from atoms and form ions?
Ionizing radiation
What is the splitting of several pieces into smaller atoms?
Nuclear fission
What is the domino effect created when neutrons liberated by a splitting atom are undergoing nuclear fission as well, which will continue splitting atoms?
Chain reaction
What is the amount of fissionable material in an atom that is required to cause a chain reaction?
Critical mass
What is a device that initiates an uncontrolled chain reaction?
Atomic bomb
What harnesses a controlled chain reaction to produce useful energy?
Nuclear reactor
What devices recycle spent nuclear fuel to produce more than they use?
Breeder reactors
