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Radioactivity Flashcards

(63 cards)

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1
Q

how is radiation absorbed or emitted

A

when electrons jump between energy levels

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2
Q

what an energy levels

A

cet distances from the nucleus that the electrons can orbit

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3
Q

what is the size of a molecule in standard form

A

10 to the power of -9

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4
Q

what is the size of an atom in standard form

A

10 to the power of -10

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5
Q

what is the size of a nucleus in standard form

A

10 to the power of -15

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6
Q

what is an isotope

A

an atom that has the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons

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7
Q

how is an ion formed

A

when electrons are lost or gained and the atoms gain an overall charge

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8
Q

what are 2 ways electrons can leave an atom

A
  1. absorbing EM radiation so that they can escape the pull of the nucleus
  2. being hit by a particle such as alpha or beta radiation
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9
Q

radiation is r_____

A

random

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10
Q

what are the 4 types of ionising radiation

A

Alpha
Beta
Gamma
neutron

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11
Q

where is ionising radiation emitted from

A

unstable nuclei

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12
Q

what is the structure of alpha radiation

A

helium nucleus with 2 protons and 2 neutrons

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13
Q

what is ionizing radiation

A

radiation that can cause atoms to ionize

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14
Q

what is the relative charge of alpha radiation

A

+2

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15
Q

what is the ionising power of alpha radiation

A

heavily ionising

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16
Q

what is the penetrating power of alpha radiation and what can it be stopped by

A

very low, stopped by paper

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17
Q

what is the relative charge of B- radiation

A

-1

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18
Q

what is the relative charge of B+ radiation?

A

+1

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19
Q

what is the relative charge of gamma radiation?

A

0

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20
Q

what is the relative charge of neutron radiation?

A

0

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21
Q

what is the ionising power of Beta radiation

A

weakly ionising

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22
Q

what is the ionising power of neutron radiation

A

not directly ionising

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23
Q

what is the ionising power of gamma radiation

A

not directly ionising

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24
Q

what is the penetrating power of Beta radiation and what can it be stopped by

A

low, stopped by aluminium

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25
what is the penetrating power of neutron radiation
high
26
what is the penetrating power of gamma radiation and what can it be stopped by
very high, stopped only by thick lead
27
what is background radiation
low levels of radiation that is present around you all the time
28
what 6 factors make up background radiation
radon gas ground and buildings medical nuclear power cosmic rays food and drink
29
what is the largest contributor to background radiation
radon gas
30
what is radon gas
a radioactive gas that is released when uranium rocks decay
31
what are the 2 tools used to measure radioactivity
geiger-muller tube dosimeter
32
what is GM tube
used to detect radiation
33
how does a GM tube work
contains argon gas which will be ionised if radiation enters. the released electrons can travel down a thin wire and be detected as radiation
34
what is radiation measured in
Becquerel
35
what are the parts of a dosimeter
photographic film open window different sections with different levels of materials to detect different types of radiation
36
what is an early model of the atom
Plum pudding model
37
who created the plum pudding model and what did it show
Thompson, atoms had an overall positive charge with negative electrons scattered across it
38
what did Rutherford discover
positively charged nucleus
39
describe rutherfords experiment
he shot alpha particles at a piece of thin gold foil and used a circular fluorescent screen to detect where they landed. he realised that although many of the alpha particles travelled straight through some of them were deflected. this was caused by a positively charged nucleus
40
what did the Bohr model show about atoms
that electrons orbit the nucleus in well-defined energy levels
41
what are the 2 types of Beta-decay
Beta - Beta +
42
how is beta-decay formed?
when a neutron in the nucleus of an unstable atom decays to become a proton and an electron. the proton stays within the nucleus but the electron is emitted from the nucleus
43
how is beta + decay formed
when a proton in the nucleus decays to become a neutron and a positron which is emitted
44
how does the atomic and mass number change after beta-decay
the mass number stays the same the atomic number increased by 1
45
how does the atomic and mass number change after beta+decay
the mass number stays the same the atomic number decreased by 1
46
how does the atomic and mass number change after alpha decay
mass number reduced by 4 the atomic number was reduced by 2
47
how does the atomic and mass number change after gamma radiation
no change
48
how does the atomic and mass number change after neutron decay
mass number - 1 the atomic number stays the same
49
what unit is used to measure radioactivity
Bq
50
what half-life
the time it takes for half of the unstable atoms to decay
51
what are 4 uses of gamma rays?
kill cancer cells sterilise surgical equipment diagnose and find cancer preserve food
52
what radiation is used in smoke alarms
alpha radiation
53
what is the use of beta decay and how is it used
control the thickness of the paper, if beta decay cannot get through the paper will be too thick so it will be flattened more
54
why is ionising radiation dangerous to humans
can knock electrons of atoms turning them into ions, this can cause mutation in DNA cells which can lead to cancer
55
what are 3 precautions to lower radiation damage to humans
1. limit the time to exposure 2. wear protective clothing 3. increase distance from the source
56
what is irradiation
ionising radiation from an external source travelling to the body
57
what are the 2 types of contamination
external internal
58
what is external contamination
when radioactive materials come into contact with a person's hair, skin or clothes
59
what is internal radiation
when a radioactive source enters the body by beating eaten or drunk
60
what is a medical tracer
substance that are used in biological processes and contain a radioactive isotope
61
how does a PET scanner work
1. a tracer is taken that produces positrons 2. when the positrons come into contact with electrons in the body the 2 particles annihilate each other and form gamma rays 3. the gamma rays are detected by the PET scanner
62
how can tumours be treated internally
using a radioactive isotope that is injected into the body, which will travel to tumours and kill the cancerous cells with ionising radiation
63
how can tumours be treated externally
several beams of gamma rays are fired from different positions towards the cancer, the beams can damage the cancer. by moving the beam the amount of ionising radiation received to surrounding tissue is reduced

Physics (9 decks)

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