P2 - Atoms And Ionising Radiation Flashcards
Describe the isotopes of an atom.
One or two stable ones, the rest are radioactive.
What do radioactive substances do?
Give out radiation from their nuclei no matter what is done to them.
What is the process of radioactive decay?
Random.
What happens to radioactive decay when you alter the temperature or bond the atom?
Nothing, it remains random and unaffected.
Where does background radiation come from? [3].
1) naturally occurring unstable isotopes.
2) space.
3) man-made sources.
Where does background radiation from naturally occurring unstable isotopes come from? [4].
Air, food, building materials, rocks.
Where does background radiation from space come from?
Cosmic rays from the Sun.
Where does background radiation from man-made sources come from? [3].
1) fallout from nuclear weapons tests.
2) nuclear accidents.
3) dumped nuclear waste.
What are alpha particles the same as?
Helium nuclei.
What makes up an alpha particle?
Two neutrons & two protons.
Describe the properties of alpha particles [6].
Big, heavy, slow.
Not far penetrating, stopped quickly even in air, strongly ionising.
Why are alpha particles strongly ionising?
They are big they hit a lot of atoms and knock electrons off them.
What are beta particles?
Electrons.
What are the properties of beta particles? [5].
Quite fast, quite small.
They penetrate moderately, have long range, are moderately ionising.
What happens when a beta particle is emitted?
A neutron turns into a proton in the nucleus.
