Characteristics of Radioactive Decay

 Radioactive decay is both spontaneous and random

 A spontaneous process is defined as:

A process which cannot be influenced by environmental factors

 This means radioactive decay cannot be affected by environmental factors such as:
o Temperature
o Pressure
o Chemical conditions

 A random process is defined as:

A process in which the exact time of decay of a nucleus cannot be predicted

 Instead, the nucleus has a constant probability, ie. the same chance, of decaying in a given time
 Therefore, with large numbers of nuclei, it is possible to statistically predict the behaviour of the
entire group

Exam Tip

Types of Radiation
Unstable Nuclei and Radiation

 Some atomic nuclei are unstable

 This is because of an imbalance in the forces within the nucleus
o Forces exist between the particles in the nucleus
 Carbon-14 is an isotope of carbon which is unstable
o It has two extra neutrons compared to stable carbon-12

Carbon-12 is stable, whereas carbon-14 is unstable. This is because carbon-14 has two extra neutrons

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  Some isotopes are unstable because of their large size or because they have too many or too few
neutrons

 Unstable nuclei can emit radiation to become more stable

o Radiation can be in the form of a high energy particle or wave

Unstable nuclei decay by emitting high energy particles or waves

 As the radiation moves away from the nucleus, it takes some energy with it
o This reduces the overall energy of the nucleus
o This makes the nucleus more stable
 The process of emitting radiation is called radioactive decay
 Radioactive decay is a random process
o This means it is not possible to know exactly when a particular nucleus will decay
 When an unstable nucleus decays it emits radiation, called nuclear radiation
 There are different types of radiation that can be emitted:
o Alpha (α)
o Beta (β-)
o Gamma (γ)

Worked Example
Which of the following statements is not true?

A. Isotopes can be unstable because they have too many or too few neutrons
B. The process of emitting particles or waves of energy from an unstable nucleus is called radioactive
decay
C. Scientists can predict when a nucleus will decay
D. Radiation refers to the particles or waves emitted from a decaying nucleus

ANSWER: C


o Answer A is true. The number of neutrons in a nucleus determines the stability
o Answer B is true. This is a suitable description of radioactive decay
o Answer D is true. Radiation is about emissions. It is different to radioactive particles
o Answer C is not true

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 o Radioactive decay is a random process
o It is not possible to predict precisely when a particular nucleus will decay

Exam Tip
The terms unstable, random and decay have very particular meanings in this topic. Remember to use them
correctly when answering questions!

Properties of Radiation
 The three different forms of nuclear radiation have different properties:

Alpha Particles

 The symbol for alpha is α

 An alpha particle is the same as a helium nucleus
o This is because they consist of two neutrons and two protons
 Alpha particles have a charge of +2
o This means they can be affected by an electric field

Beta Particles

 The symbol for beta is β-

 Beta particles are fast-moving electrons
 They are produced in nuclei when a neutron changes into a proton and an electron
 Beta particles have a charge of -1
o This means they can be affected by an electric field

Gamma Rays

 The symbol for gamma is γ

 Gamma rays are electromagnetic waves
 They have the highest energy of the different types of electromagnetic waves
 Gamma rays have no charge

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 Alpha particles, beta particles and gamma waves can be emitted from unstable nuclei

 The properties of Alpha, Beta and Gamma are given in this table, and then described in more detail
below

Different Properties of Nuclear Radiation

 The trend down the table shows:

o The range increases
o Penetrating power increases
o Ionisation decreases

Penetrating Power

 Alpha, beta and gamma have different properties

 They penetrate materials in different ways
o This means they are stopped by different materials

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Alpha, beta and gamma are different in how they penetrate materials. Alpha is the least penetrating, and
gamma is the most penetrating

 Alpha is stopped by paper, whereas beta and gamma pass through it

 Beta is stopped by a few millimetres of aluminium
o Gamma can pass through aluminium
 Gamma rays are only partially stopped by thick lead

Ionising Power

 All nuclear radiation is capable of ionising atoms that it hits

 When an atom is ionised, the number of electrons it has changes
 This gives it a non-zero charge

When radiation passes close to atoms it can knock out electrons, ionising the atom

 Alpha radiation is the most ionising form of nuclear radiation

o This is because alpha particles have a charge of +2
 Gamma radiation is the least ionising form of nuclear radiation

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Worked Example
A student has an unknown radioactive source. They are trying to work which type of radiation is being given
off:

A. Alpha particles
B. Beta particles
C. Gamma rays
D. Neutrons
They measure the count-rate, using a Geiger-Muller tube, when the source is placed behind different
material. Their results are shown in the table below:

Which type of radiation is being given off by the source?

ANSWER:

o The answer is not A because the radiation passed through the paper almost unchanged
 This means it is not alpha
o The answer is not C or D because the aluminium decreased the count-rate significantly
 This means it is not gamma (gamma penetrates aluminium)
 This also means it is not neutrons (neutrons penetrate aluminium, however you do
not need to know this for your GCSE)
o Therefore, the source must be Beta particles

Deflection in Electric & Magnetic Fields

 Because of their charges, alpha and beta particles can be deflected by electric and magnetic fields

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 Alpha and Beta particles can be deflected by electric fields

 Because they have opposite charges, alpha and beta particles are deflected in opposite directions
 Beta is deflected by more than alpha, because beta particles have a much smaller mass
 Gamma is not deflected because gamma rays have no charge

Alpha and Beta particles can also be deflected by magnetic fields

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 Diagram showing an experiment to find the type of radiation being emitted by a source

Ionisation
 Alpha is by far the most ionising form of radiation
o Alpha particles leave a dense trail of ions behind them, affecting virtually every atom
they meet
o Because of this they quickly lose their energy and so have a short range
o Their short range makes them relatively harmless if handled carefully, but they have the
potential to be extremely dangerous if the alpha emitter enters the body
 Beta particles are moderately ionising
o The particles create a less dense trail of ions than alpha, and consequently have a longer
range
o They tend to be more dangerous than alpha because they are able to travel further and
penetrate the skin, and yet are still ionising enough to cause significant damage
 Gamma is the least ionising form of radiation (although it is still dangerous)
o Because Gamma rays don’t produce as many ions as alpha or beta, they are more
penetrating and have a greater range
o This can make them hazardous in large amounts

Applications of Radioactivity
 Radioactivity has a large number of uses in both medicine and industry, some of which are listed
below

Measuring the thickness of materials:

Beta particles can be used to measure the thickness of thin materials such as paper, cardboard or
aluminium foil

 As a material moves above a beta source, the particles that are able to penetrate it can be monitored
using a detector

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  If the material gets thicker more particles will be absorbed, meaning that less will get through
 If the material gets thinner the opposite happens
 This allows the machine to make adjustments to keep the thickness of the material constant
 Note: Devices like this use beta radiation because it will be partially absorbed by the material

If alpha particles were used all of them would be absorbed and none would get through

If gamma were used almost all of it would get through and the detector would not be able to sense
any difference if the thickness were to change

Tracers

 Tracers are radioactive isotopes that can be added to some fluid so that the flow of that fluid can be
monitored
 Tracers have numerous uses in both medicine and industry:
o In medicine tracers can be added to the blood to check blood flow around the body and
search for blockages (blood clots)
o In industry tracers may be added into an oil pipeline in order to check for any leaks
 In all cases:
o The amount used is kept to a minimum to reduce people’s exposure to radiation
o Isotopes are chosen that have short half-lives of around a few hours: long enough to carry out
the procedure, but not so long that they cause long-term harm
o Gamma radiation is used as it is highly penetrating (you can detect it) and low ionising
(minimising harm)

Radiotherapy

 Radiotherapy is the name given to the treatment of cancer using radiation

(Chemotherapy is treatment using chemicals)

 Although radiation can cause cancer, it is also highly effective at treating it

 Radiation can kill living cells. Some cells, such as bacteria and cancer cells, are more susceptible to
radiation than others
 Beams of gamma rays are directed at the cancerous tumour

(Gamma rays are used because they are able to penetrate the body, reaching the tumour)

 The beams are moved around to minimise harm to healthy tissue whilst still being aimed at the
tumour

Sterilisation

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  Medical instruments are sterilised by exposing them to gamma rays
 The gamma rays kill bacteria on the instruments and destroy viruses
 Gamma rays are far more effective at killing bacteria than either boiling water or chemical treatment
and are able to penetrate the instruments reaching areas that may otherwise not be properly sterilised

Detecting Radiation
 When radiation passes close to an atom, it knocks out electrons, ionising the atom
 Radiation detectors work by detecting the presence of these ions or the chemical changes that they
produce
 Examples of radiation detectors include:
o Photographic film (often used in badges)
o Geiger-Muller (GM) tubes
o Ionisation chambers
o Scintillation counters
o Spark counters

A Geiger-Muller tube (or Geiger counter) is a common type of radiation detector

Decay Equations
 Radioactive decay events can be shown using a decay equation
 A decay equation is similar to a chemical reaction equation
o The particles present before the decay are shown before the arrow
o The particles produced in the decay are shown after the arrow
 During decay equations the sum of the mass and atomic numbers before the reaction must be the
same as the sum of the mass and atomic numbers after the reaction

 The following decay equation shows Polonium-212 undergoing alpha decay

o It forms Lead-208 and an alpha particle
o An alpha particle can also be written as a helium nucleus (Symbol He)

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 The polonium nucleus emits an alpha particle, causing its mass and charge to decrease. This means it
changes into a new element

Alpha Decay

 During alpha decay an alpha particle is emitted from an unstable nucleus

 A completely new element is formed in the process

Alpha decay usually happens in large unstable nuclei, causing the overall mass and charge of the nucleus
to decrease

 An alpha particle is a helium nucleus

o It is made of 2 protons and 2 neutrons
 When the alpha particle is emitted from the unstable nucleus, the mass number and atomic number of
the nucleus changes
o The mass number decreases by 4
o The atomic number decreases by 2
 The charge on the nucleus also decreases by 2
o This is because protons have a charge of +1 each

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 Alpha decay equation

Beta Decay

 During beta decay, a neutron changes into a proton and an electron

o The electron is emitted and the proton remains in the nuclei
 A completely new element is formed because the atomic number changes

Beta decay often happens in unstable nuclei that have too many neutrons. The mass number stays the
same, but the atomic number increases by one

 A beta particle is a high-speed electron

 It has a mass number of 0
o This is because the electron has a negligible mass, compared to neutrons and protons
 Therefore, the mass number of the decaying nuclei remains the same
 Electrons have an atomic number of -1
o This means that the new nuclei will increase its atomic number by 1 in order to maintain
the overall atomic number before and after the decay

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  The following equation shows carbon-14 undergoing beta decay
o It forms nitrogen-14 and a beta particle
o Beta particles are written as an electron in this equation

Beta decay equation

Gamma Decay

 During gamma decay, a gamma ray is emitted from an unstable nucleus

 The process that makes the nucleus less energetic but does not change its structure

Gamma decay does not affect the mass number or the atomic number of the radioactive nucleus, but it
does reduce the energy of the nucleus

 The gamma ray that is emitted has a lot of energy, but no mass or charge
 Here is an example of Uranium-238 undergoing gamma decay
o Notice that the mass number and atomic number of the unstable nuclei remains the same
during the decay

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 Gamma decay equation

Neutron Emission

 A small number of isotopes can decay by emitting neutrons.

 When a nucleus emits a neutron:
o The number of protons does not change:

The atomic (proton) number does not change

o The total number of particles (nucleons) in the nucleus decreases by 1:

o The mass (nucleon) number decreases by 1

Worked Example
A nucleus with 84 protons and 126 neutrons undergoes alpha decay. It forms lead, which has the element
symbol Pb.

Which of the isotopes of lead pictured is the correct one formed during the decay?

ANSWER: A

Step 1: Calculate the mass number of the original nucleus


o The mass number is equal to the number of protons plus the number of neutrons
o The original nucleus has 84 protons and 126 neutrons

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 84 + 126 = 210


o The mass number of the original nucleus is 210

Step 2: Calculate the new atomic number


o The alpha particle emitted is made of two protons and two neutrons
o Protons have an atomic number of 1, and neutrons have an atomic number of 0
o Removing two protons and two neutrons will reduce the atomic number by 2

84 – 2 = 82


o The new nucleus has an atomic number of 82

Step 3: Calculate the new mass number


o Protons and neutrons both have a mass number of 1
o Removing two protons and two neutrons will reduce the mass number by 4

210 – 4 = 206


o The new nucleus has a mass number of 206

Worked Example
A nucleus with 11 protons and 13 neutrons undergoes beta decay. It forms magnesium, which has the
element symbol Mg.

Which is the correct isotope of magnesium formed during the decay?

ANSWER: D

Step 1: Calculate the mass number of the original nucleus


o The mass number is equal to the number of protons plus the number of neutrons
o The original nucleus has 11 protons and 13 neutrons

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 11 + 13 = 24


o The mass number of the original nucleus is 24

Step 2: Calculate the new atomic number


o During beta decay a neutron changes into a proton and an electron
o The electron is emitted as a beta particle
o The neutron has an atomic number of 0 and the proton has an atomic number of 1
o So the atomic number increases by 1

11 + 1 = 12


o The new nucleus has an atomic number of 12

Step 3: Calculate the new mass number


o Protons and neutrons both have a mass number of 1
o Changing a neutron to a proton will not affect the mass number
o The new nucleus has a mass number of 24 (the same as before)

Exam Tip
It is easy to forget that an alpha particle is a helium nucleus. The two are interchangeable, so don’t be
surprised to see either used in the exam.You are not expected to know the names of the elements produced
during radioactive decays, but you do need to be able to calculate the mass and atomic numbers by making
sure they are balanced on either side of the reaction.

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