OCR (A) Physics GCSE

Topic P6: Radioactivity

Summary Notes
(Content in bold is for Higher Tier only)

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P6.1 Radioactive Emissions

Atomic Nuclei
Nuclei are made up of protons and neutrons. Protons have a relative charge of +1 and
Neutrons have no charge. This means that ​nuclei​ have an overall ​positive charge.

Isotopes
These are atoms of the ​same element​ but with ​different numbers of neutrons, ​meaning
their​ atomic number​ must be the same but the ​mass number​ is different.
e.g. Carbon-12, Carbon-13 and Carbon-14.

X is the symbol of the element.

A is the ​mass number​ (neutrons + protons).
Z is the ​atomic number ​(protons) and determines what the element is.

N is the ​charge​. On a neutral atom, the number of electrons = number of protons, so

charges cancel out. If there are N more electrons than protons, then the charge is –N. If
there are N fewer electrons than protons, then the charge is +N.

The number of protons is ​fixed​ for each individual element, so it is a defining feature for
each element.

Some nuclei are ​unstable​ leading to ​random decay​. This random nature means it is
impossible to predict​ ​when any one nucleus will decay.

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Types of Decay

Alpha Decay - ​Occurs for nucleus’ that are too large. An​ alpha particle ​is emitted, which is
equivalent to a helium nucleus (2 protons and 2 neutrons).

Beta Decay - ​Occurs when an atom has too many neutrons. A neutron is turned into a
proton and a ​beta particle ​is emitted.​ ​A beta particle is equivalent to an electron.

Electron Capture - ​This occurs when there are too many neutrons and the nucleus is too
large. The nucleus absorbs a neutron and emits a ​neutron​.

Gamma Emission - ​If a nucleus has too much energy, a ​gamma ray ​is emitted. Proton and
neutron numbers do not change, the nucleus has lower energy.

These decays result in changes in charge, mass or proton number. By analysing these
changes, the type of decay occurring can be worked out.

Equations

Alpha Decay

Beta Decay

Gamma

Jcymc90 - Own work​, ​CC BY-SA 4.0

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Electrons
In each atom, electrons are arranged at different distances from the nucleus in energy
levels. The lowest level is closest to the nucleus and known as ground state.

When EM radiation hits an atom, electrons absorb the energy and become ​excited​, rising to
a higher energy level. When the electrons fall back down to ground state, they lose this
energy by emitting radiation.

When outer electrons are given lots of energy, they can be lost from the atom. This is called
ionisation​, and the atom becomes a charged ​ion.​ ​This is because the electron has gained
enough energy to free itself from the atom completely.

The radiation required to excite or ionise atoms can be from any part of the EM spectrum.
The higher the frequency (or the shorter the wavelength) the more energy it provides the
electrons in the atoms. Therefore gamma rays ionise atoms most easily.

Half Life
This is the time taken for the ​number of unstable nuclei ​of an ​isotope​ in a sample to
halve. The time for any given atom to decay cannot be determined, however, the time for
half the atoms in a sample to decay is relatively constant. Therefore this approximation
works best when there is a large number of atoms.

Half-life is used to show how long radioactive atoms will last for, and each half-life is specific
to each isotope (i.e. half-life of Carbon-13 is different to Carbon-14).

e.g. Carbon-13 has a half-life of around 5000 years and Technetium has a half-life of
6 hours, and an isotope of Uranium has a half-life of 4.47 ​BILLION​ years.

By analysing the proportion of decayed and undecayed isotopes in a sample ​radioactive

dating​ methods can be used to work out the age of the sample.

Net Decline
The ratio of net decline is the ratio of isotope present now to the initial isotope.

initial number − number af ter X half lives

net decline = initial number

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Example:
There were initially 80 nuclei of an element with a half-life of 15 minutes. What was the
net decline after 3 half-lives?
1st half lif e = 40
2nd half lif e = 20
3rd half lif e = 10

80−10 7
=> net decline = 80 = 8

Penetration Properties
Alpha radiation ​is ​most​ ionising and​ least ​penetrating meaning it cannot penetrate further
than ~5cm of air and can be stopped by paper.

Beta radiation ​has ​medium​ penetrating ​power​ and medium ionising power ionisers as beta
particles are lighter than alpha particles but heavier than gamma rays, which have no mass.
Beta radiation is stopped by around 5m of air, or a few millimetres of aluminium.

Gamma radiation ​has​ least ​ionising power and​ most​ penetrating power. It is only stopped
by a several of lead, or several metres of concrete.

P6.2 Uses and Hazards

Hazards
Contamination:
Radioactive material lasts for a ​long​ period of time, transferring radiation to an object.
e.g. radioactive dust settling on your skin so your skin becomes contaminated.

Irradiation:
Only lasts for a ​short​ period of time as the source emits radiation, which reaches the object.
e.g. radioactive dust emitting beta radiation, which “irradiates” your skin.

Medical items​ are irradiated sometimes to kill bacteria on its surface, but not enough to
make the medical tools themselves radioactive.

Half-Life Hazards (Physics only)

Short half-life:
The source presents ​less​ of a risk if it has a short half-life, as it does not remain strongly
radioactive for as long. Initially it is very radioactive, but ​quickly​ dies down, so presents less
of a long-term risk.

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Long half-life:
The source remains ​weakly radioactive​ for a long period of time.
e.g.​ Americium​ has a half-life of 432 years. It is an alpha emitter and this half-life
means it is used in ​smoke alarms.

It is emitted into the air around the alarm and does not travel far since alpha is
weakly penetrating. If smoke reaches the alarm, the number of alpha particles in the
surrounding air drops causing the alarm to sound.

It is suitable because it will not need to be replenished, and its weak activity means it
won’t be harmful to anyone.

Medical Uses of Radioactive Materials ​(Physics Only)

Tracers
Technetium ​is used as a medical tracer. It has a half-life of ​6 hours​ and decays into a safe
isotope that can be excreted by the body. It is injected or swallowed and there is enough
time for it to flow through the body and be detected before it decays away. Technetium is a
gamma emitter​, so can pass through the body tissue without being absorbed as it is the
most penetrating.

Chemotherapy
Gamma emitters​ are used to emit gamma radiation, which can be directed onto certain
areas of the body with ​cancerous cells.​ ​The cells absorb the energy and are killed. It is
used to control any other unwanted tissue too.

However, as it is hard to accurately target the cancerous cells, surrounding​ healthy cells
may also be irradiated, and their destruction causes unhealthy side effects.

Nuclear Fission (Physics Only)

Some nuclei are ​unstable​, and may split

into two smaller nuclei. In this process a
neutron is released along as energy in the
form of EM radiation. This neutron may
collide​ with another radioactive nucleus and
be absorbed, making it unstable. The
nucleus then splits, releasing another
neutron and more energy.

A ​chain reaction​ is set up, as the energy is

being released from one split causes another ​Nuclear fission chain reaction (tes.com)
split to occur. This process is used in ​nuclear
fission​, and typically occurs with ​uranium​ nuclei.

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Nuclear Fusion (Physics Only)
This is when two ​small​ nuclei fuse to form a heavier nucleus, releasing large quantities of
energy​ ​in the process. The sum of the masses of the two nuclei is more than the mass of
the heavier nucleus because some of the mass is​ converted into energy​ and released as
radiation​.

Nuclear fusion (bbc.co.uk)

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