Radioactive Decay HL

Question 1

What are the 4 types of radioactive decay?

Answer 1

Alpha decay
Beta-Minus decay
Beta-Positive (Positron) decay
Neutron decay

Question 2

When a nucleus emits an alpha particle, what happens?

Answer 2

The atom will lose 2 protons and 2 neutrons, meaning that the mass number will decrease by 4 and the atomic number will decrease by 2

Question 3

What happens in Beta-minus decay?

Answer 3

A neutron changes into a proton and therefore gains an electron, meaning that there is no change in the mass number but the atomic number increases by 1

Question 4

What happens in Beta-plus (Positron) decay?

Answer 4

A proton changes into a neutron and releases a positron, therefore the mass number hasn’t changed but the atomic number decreases by 1

Question 5

What happens when a nucleus emits a proton?

Answer 5

The mass number decreases by 1 as it has lost a neutron but the atomic number stays the same.