Radio Active Emissions Flashcards
What is an isotope?
An isotope is an atom with the same number of protons and electrons but a different amount of neutrons
The nucleus of unstable atoms will …
Emit radiation
What is alpha radiation?
Alpha radiation is the nucleus of a helium atom
What is beta radiation?
A fast moving electron
What is gamma radiation?
A wave of the electromagnetic spectrum
What is neutron radiation?
A neutron from the nucleus
Where does the bats particle come from?
Neutrons are not stable they can decay to give out a proton and an electron
How do you detect radiation?
With a Geiger counter it clicks when radiation enters it. Each click is a tiny current produced when the radiation ionised the gas inside the tube
What would stop alpha radiation?
A few sheets of paper, skin, a few cm of air
What would stop beta radiation?
A few mm of aluminium
What would stop gamma radiation?
A few cm of lead or a meter of concrete
Put gamma, alpha and beta radiation in order from smallest to largest penetrating power
Alpha, beta, gamma
What type of radiation is emitted by a radioactive material?
Ionising radiation
What does ionising radiation do to atoms?
The radiation can remove electrons from atoms to produce positively charged ions
What is the relative mass of the types of radiation?
Alpha - large, beta - small, gamma - none
What is the charge of the three types of radiation?
Alpha +2, beta -1, gamma none
What is the ionising power of the three types of radiation?
Alpha high, beta medium, gamma low
What is the range of the three types of radiation?
Alpha short, beta medium, gamma long
Why do alpha particles have a short range?
You have to transfer energy to an atom to ionise it. Alpha particles transfer more energy to the material they are travelling through than gamma rays this is why they have a much shorter range
What happens in alpha decay?
Large nuclei are unstable. Two protons and two neutrons can join up to form an alpha particle which is emitted from the nucleus
What happens in beta decay?
In beta decay a neutron decays to a proton and an electron. The electron is emitted as the beta particle. The number of neutrons goes down by one but the number of protons goes up by one. The charge in the nucleus increases by +1
What happens in gamma decay?
Gamma rays are electromagnetic rays, so don’t have mass or charge. When a nucleus emits a gamma ray the mass and atomic numbers stay the same. Gamma rays are often given off along side alpha or beta decay
What happens in neutron emission?
When some nuclei decay they produce nuclei with large numbers of neutrons. These nuclei can emit neutrons
Why when listening to a Geiger counter does it not click at regular intervals?
This is because the material doesn’t emit radiation in a regular pattern it is random
