Physics G Radioactivity Flashcards
State three sources of background radiation
Any fromrocks/radon gasspace/ cosmic rays/sunmedical sourcescarbon atoms in living things
A nucleus of radon-222 has 86 protons. How many protons are there is a nucleus of radon-220?
86
A nucleus of radon-222 has 136 neutrons. How many neutrons are there in a nucleus of radon-220?
134
The number of nucleons in a carbon-14 nucleus is
14
The number of neutrons in a carbon-14 nucleus is
8
The number of electrons in a carbon-14 atom is
6 - same as protons
What are the three types of ionising radiation/radioactivity?
Alpha, beta and gamma
What is an alpha particle?
A helium nucleus
Is an alpha particle positively charged, negatively charged or neutral?
positively charged - has 2 protons and 2 neutrons
What is a beta particle?
An electron
Is a beta particle positively charges, negatively charged or neutral?
negatively charged
How is a beta particle produced?
A neutron splits into a proton and an electron. The electron is ejected.
Is gamma radiation a particle?
No - it is an electromagnetic wave, it has no mass
Is gamma radiation positively charged, negatively charged or neutral?
It has no charge
What are isotopes?
Atoms with the same number of protons are the same element. Isotopes are the atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons.
