Nuclear Radiation
breaking up of atoms (decay) gives off nuclear radiation
Alpha
Beta
Gamma
particle made up of two protons and two neutrons
particle = 1 electron
a wave
most ionising
medium ionisation
least ionising
short range
medium range
long range - most penetrating
large mass compared to beta
small mass compared to alpha
no mass
positively charged
negatively charged
no charge
stopped by paper
stopped by a sheet of aluminium
never completely stopped but weakened a lot by lead
Activity of a sample is measured by a GM tube in counts/second
Half-life is the time taken by a radioactive isotope to decay by half.
Background radiation is some radiation that is always present... radon gas, cosmic rays, electronic equipment, etc
Activity of a sample is the average number of disintegrations per second
exposure to radioactive samples should be limited as much as possible.