Nice flashcards
| Front | Describe this: "The existence of the neutrino was hypothesised to account for conservation of energy in beta decay." |
| Back | -It was found that beta particles were released with kinetic energies up to a maximum that depended on the isotope-Scientists were puzzled how the energy of the beta particles varied up to a maxiumum, when each unstable nucleus lost a certain amount of energy in the process-Either energy was not conserved in the change or some of it was caried away by mystery particles, called neutrinos and antineutrinos-Hypothesis was unproven for over 20 years until antineutrinos were discoered |
| Front | Describe what happens during gamma radiation |
| Back | -EM radiation emitted by an unstable nucleus: can pass through thick metal plates, no mass and no charge-Emitted by a nucleus with too much energy, following an alpha or beta emission |
| Front | Describe what happens during beta radiation |
| Back | -Beta radiation consists of fast-moving electrons-Unstable nucleus emits beta particle, to become stable, after a neutron in the nucleus changes into a proton: beta particle emitted instantly after change + antineutrino is emitted: no charge-Atomic number increases by 1, nucleon number remains the same-Beta radiation occurs when nuclei have too many neutronsAXZ -> AXZ+1 + 0β-1+ ν(hat on top) |