half life, nucleur fission and fussion Flashcards
what is fission?
splitting of a larger atomic nucleus in to 2 smaller nuclei.
what is half life?
half life is the average time taken for the number of nuclei in a sample to halve (is is a time).
what are the different types of radioactivity?
alpha particles, beta particles and gamma rays.
whats it called when an atom splits up and emits radioactivity?
radioactive decay
what happens when a atom is unstable?
causes radioactive decay
where does the radioactivity come from?
the nucleus of the atom
what does a fuel element contain?
fuel rods
how many stringers are there in one reactir core?
408
what is a stringer?
stack of 7 fuel rods
what is an isotope?
an atom with the same number of protons and a different number on neutrons
what is beta radiation?
a very high speed and high energy electron
what is alpha radiation made of?
2 protons and 2 neutrons (the same as a helium nucleus)
what starts nucleur fission?
a neutron is fired at the nucleus
what chrage and mass does gamma radiation have?
none
what type of radiation would you use for a medical tracer?
gamma radiation
