4.2.5

Types of Radioactive Emission

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Types of Radioactive Emission

There are three types of ionising radiation and they vary in their ability to ionise and penetrate substances:

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Alpha radiation

  • Each alpha particle contains two protons and two neutrons.
  • Alpha particles have a relative mass of 4, so they are big and heavy.
  • Alpha radiation is strongly ionising.
  • Alpha radiation is less able to penetrate materials
    • It is stopped by a small amount of matter (e.g. paper).
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Beta radiation

  • Beta radiation is made up of high-energy electrons.
  • Beta radiation is more ionising than gamma radiation but less ionising than alpha radiation.
  • Beta radiation is less penetrative than gamma radiation but more penetrative than alpha radiation.
    • It can pass through paper but is stopped by aluminium foil.
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Gamma radiation

  • Gamma radiation is weakly ionising.
  • Gamma radiation is highly penetrative.
    • It is stopped only by centimetres of lead or meters of concrete.

Jump to other topics

1Energy

2Electricity

3Particle Model of Matter

4Atoms & Radiation

5Forces

5.1Basics of Motion

5.2Forces

5.3Effects of Forces

5.4Pressure

6Waves

7Magnetism

8Astrophysics

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