Radioactivity Part 1 Flashcards
When was radioactivity discovered?
March 1, 1896
Who discovered radioactivity?
Antoine Henri Becquerel
French physicist who accidentally discovered radioactivity by opening a drawer
Antoine Henri Becquerel
When was Antoine Becquerel born?
In Paris, 1852
What did Antoine studied because of his father?
Fluorescence and Phosphorescence
Becquerel was specially interested in what?
Uranium and its compounds
Who is Antoine Henri Becquerel’s father?
Edmond Becquerel
This is where Becquerel first heard about Roentgen’s theory.
French Academy of Sciences
TRUE or FALSE: From Becquerel’s accidental discovery, uranium salts emitted radiation without any stimulation from sunlight.
True
TRUE or FALSE: It was announced that Uranium was indeed what was emitting the radiation.
True
They began studying the strange Uranium rays
Marie Sklodowska Curie and Pierre Curie
When did the Curies started studying the strange Uranium rays?
1898
What are the 3 radioactive elements discovered by the Curies?
- Polonium (Po)
- Thorium (Th)
- Radium (Ra)
What did the Curies mainly discovered?
They figured out how to measure the intensity of radioactivity
Who coined the term “radioactivity”
Marie Curie
Becquerel and the Curies shared what specific award, for their work in radioactivity?
1903 Nobel Prize
This is a naturally-occurring phenomenon in a number of substances
Radioactivity
This is where atoms of a substance spontaneously/continuously emit invisible but energetic radiations, which can penetrate materials that are opaque to visible light
Radioactivity
Radioactivity can be harmful to living cells but can be helpful to the field of what?
Field of medicine
TRUE or FALSE: Vast majority of nuclei found on Earth is not stable.
False, because most of nuclei found on Earth is indeed, stable.
Approximate number of stable isotopes:
270 stable isotopes
Number of naturally-occurring radioisotopes:
50 radioactive isotopes (radioisotopes)
This is a plot of nuclei as a function of proton/atomic number (z) and neutron number (N) which includes all stable nuclei and known radioactive nuclei, either man-made or natural, along with their decay properties
Chart of nuclides
TRUE or FALSE: Nuclei are unstable if they are excited, that is, not in their lowest energy states.
True
“Nature seeks the lowest energy state”
Nuclear stability