Nuclear radiation Flashcards
what is an alpha particle the same as? (in terms of composition)
a helium nucleus
-2 protons and 2 neutrons
what is beta radiation?
in what instance does it happen?
a neutron will turn into a proton and emit a fast-moving electron–when an atom has too many neutrons
symbol equation for a beta minus particle?
0
β
-1
what is beta radiation?
in what instance does it happen?
a proton will turn into a neutron and emit a fast-moving positron
-when an atom has too few neutrons
symbol equation for a positron?
0
β
+1
what is the:
-penetrating power
-ionising power
-range
of an alpha particle?
-skin/paper
-high
-< 5 centimetre
what is the:
-penetrating power
-ionising power
-range
of a beta particle?
-3 mm aluminium foil
-Low
-≈ 1 metre (m)
what is the:
-penetrating power
-ionising power
-range
of a gamma particle?
-Lead/concrete
-Very low
-> 1 kilometre (km)
what can radioactive decay be detected by? (2)
-photographic film
-a Geiger-Muller tube (G-M tube)
what is half life?
the time it takes for half of the unstable nuclei in a sample to decay
what is the activity of a radioactive substance is measured in?
Becquerel (Bq).
what is a becquerel equal to?
one nuclear decay per second
why does gamma not change the structure of a nucleus in any way?
because it is pure energy
