PARTICLE PHYSICS

PAPER 1
1 Alpha, beta and gamma radiations have various depths of penetration in matter and different
charges.

Which row best summarises the penetration and charge of each radiation?

alpha beta gamma

A absorbed by a absorbed by several not fully absorbed by

sheet of card mm of aluminium several cm of lead
negative charge no charge no charge

B absorbed by a absorbed by several not fully absorbed by

sheet of card mm of aluminium several cm of lead
negative charge positive charge no charge

C absorbed by a absorbed by several not fully absorbed by

sheet of card mm of aluminium several cm of lead
positive charge negative charge no charge

D absorbed by several not fully absorbed by absorbed by a

mm of aluminium several cm of lead sheet of card
positive charge negative charge no charge

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 45
2 In 2002, two-proton radioactive decay of an isotope of iron, 26 Fe, was observed.

What could be the resulting product?

43 43 45 47
A 26 Fe B 24 Cr C 24 Cr D 28 Ni
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3 U++ is a doubly-ionised uranium atom. The uranium atom has a nucleon number of 235 and a
proton number of 92.

In a simple model of the atom, how many particles are in this ionised atom?

A 235 B 325 C 327 D 329

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4 The grid shows a number of nuclides arranged according to the number of protons and the
number of neutrons in each.

A nucleus of the nuclide 83 Li decays by emitting a β-particle.

What is the resulting nuclide?

4 A B
number of
protons
6 7 8
3 3 Li 3 Li 3 Li

3 4
2 2 He 2 He C D

1 2
1 1H 1H

0 1 2 3 4 5 6
number of neutrons

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5 A nucleus X decays into a nucleus Y by emitting an alpha particle followed by two beta particles.

Which statement about this nuclear decay is correct?

A Beta particle decay occurs when a proton changes into a neutron.

B Nucleus Y has the same nucleon number as nucleus X.
C Nucleus Y is an isotope of nucleus X.
D The total mass of the products is equal to the mass of the initial nucleus X.

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6 A slow-moving neutron collides with a nucleus of uranium-235. This results in a nuclear reaction
that is represented by the following nuclear equation

235 1 154 80
92 U + 0n → 60 Nd + 32 Ge + x

where x represents one or more particles.

What does x represent?

A one neutron
B two electrons
C two neutrons
D two protons 9702/12/M/J/14/Q39

27
7 The first artificial radioactive substance was made by bombarding aluminium, 13 Al , with
30
α-particles. This produced an unstable isotope of phosphorus, 15 P .

What was the by-product of this reaction?

A an α-particle

B a β-particle
C a neutron
D a proton
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8 An isotope of thorium has a nucleon number of 232 and a proton number of 90. It decays to form
another isotope of thorium with a nucleon number of 228.

How many alpha particles and beta particles are emitted by a nucleus of thorium during this
decay?

alpha particles beta particles

A 0 4
B 1 0
C 1 2
D 2 1
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9 Four nuclei are represented below.

28 25 25 24
14 E 15 G 12 M 13 Q

Which statement about these nuclei is correct?

A An uncharged atom of element Q has 24 orbital electrons.

B Nucleus M could transform into Q by emitting a beta particle.
C Nuclei G and M are isotopes of the same element.
D When E absorbs a neutron and then emits an alpha particle, nucleus E transforms into M.

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10 When α-particles are directed at gold leaf

1 almost all α-particles pass through without deflection,

2 a few α-particles are deviated through large angles.

What are the reasons for these effects?

1 2

A most α-particles have enough energy gold is very dense so a few low energy
to pass right through the gold leaf α-particles bounce back from the gold surface
B most α-particles miss all gold atoms a few α-particles bounce off gold atoms
C the gold nucleus is very small so occasionally the path of an α-particle is
most α-particles miss all nuclei close to a nucleus
D the positive charge in an atom is not occasionally an α-particle experiences many
concentrated enough to deflect an α-particle small deflections in the same direction

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222 206
11 The nuclide 86 Rn decays in a sequence of stages to form the nuclide 82 Pb .

Four of the nuclides formed in the sequence are α-particle emitters. The others are β-particle
emitters.

How many nuclides formed in the decay sequence are β-particle emitters?

A 2 B 4 C 8 D 12
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12 An experiment in which α-particles were deflected by a gold foil produced new insights into the
structure of the atom.

Which conclusion can be drawn from the results of the experiment?

A Atomic nuclei occupy a very small fraction of the volume of an atom.

B Electrons orbit the atomic nucleus.
C Some atoms of the same element contain different numbers of neutrons.
D The atomic nucleus contains protons and neutrons.

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13 A radioactive substance contains a number of identical nuclei that emit β-particles.

Which property of these nuclei remains unaltered by the emission?

A charge
B neutron number
C nucleon number
D proton number
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238 234
14 A uranium-238 nucleus, 92 U , undergoes nuclear decays to form uranium-234, 92 U .

Which series of decays could give this result?

A emission of four β-particles

B emission of four γ-rays

C emission of one α-particle and two β-particles

D emission of two α-particles and eight β-particles

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15 Nucleus P decays in two stages to produce nucleus Q.

Which decay sequence will result in the highest number of neutrons in nucleus Q?

A an α-particle followed by a β-particle

B an α-particle followed by a γ-ray

C a β-particle followed by another β-particle

D a β-particle followed by a γ-ray

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133
16 A neutral atom has a nucleus given by the symbol 55 Cs .

How many protons, neutrons and electrons are in this atom?

protons neutrons electrons

A 55 78 55
B 55 133 55
C 78 55 78
D 133 55 133
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17 The nuclear equation for a fission reaction is shown below.

235 1 93 141
92 U + 0n → X Rb + 55 Cs + Y 10 n

What are the values of X and Y?

X Y

A 37 0
B 37 1
C 37 2
D 38 2

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18 Which statement describes β– decay in terms of a simple quark model?

A A down quark changes to an up quark and emits an electron and an electron antineutrino.
B A down quark changes to an up quark and emits a positron and an electron neutrino.
C An up quark changes to a down quark and emits an electron and an electron antineutrino.
D An up quark changes to a down quark and emits a positron and an electron neutrino.

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19 Which word equation represents β+ decay?

A proton → neutron + electron + electron antineutrino

B proton → neutron + electron + electron neutrino

C proton → neutron + positron + electron antineutrino

D proton → neutron + positron + electron neutrino

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20 Which statement about the alpha-particle scattering experiment provides evidence for the
existence of the nucleus?

A A tiny proportion of the alpha-particles are deflected through large angles.

B Slower alpha-particles are deflected through larger angles.
C The kinetic energies of the deflected alpha-particles are unchanged.
D The number of alpha-particles deflected depends on the thickness of the foil.

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 185
21 The gold nucleus 79 Au undergoes alpha decay.

What are the nucleon number and proton number of the nucleus formed by this decay?

nucleon number proton number

A 183 79
B 183 77
C 181 77
D 181 75
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22 Which row gives the correct classification of protons, electrons and neutrinos?

protons electrons neutrinos

A hadrons leptons hadrons

B hadrons leptons leptons
C leptons hadrons hadrons
D leptons hadrons leptons

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23 Which equation represents β+ decay?

A neutron → proton + positron + antineutrino

B neutron → proton + positron + neutrino

C proton → neutron + positron + antineutrino

D proton → neutron + positron + neutrino

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24 A nitrogen-13 nucleus 137 N undergoes beta decay.

In the equations below, ν and represent a neutrino and antineutrino respectively and γ
represents a photon of gamma radiation.

Which equation represents this decay?

13 13
A 7N → 6C + β– + + γ
13 13
B 7N → 6C + β– + ν + γ
13 13
C 7N → 6C + β+ + + γ
13 13
D 7N → 6C + β+ + ν + γ
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222 214
25 Radon 86 Rn is the start of a decay chain that forms bismuth 83 Bi by α and β– emission.

For the decay of each nucleus of radon, how many α particles and β– particles are emitted?

α particles β– particles

A 1 1
B 2 1
C 1 2
D 2 2
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26 The magnitude of the charge on the proton may be regarded as +1 unit. On this basis, the
charges on the up (u) quark, down (d) quark and their antiquarks ( u and d ) are not whole units.

Which row in the table shows the correct values for the charges on the u, d, u and d quarks?

u d u d

A +2 –1 +2 –1
3 3 3 3

B –2 +1 +2 –1
3 3 3 3

C +2 –1 –2 +1
3 3 3 3

D –2 +1 –2 +1
3 3 3 3

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27 The table lists the nucleon number and the proton number of various nuclei. The nuclei are
represented by the letters L to T.

nucleon proton
nucleus
number number

L 227 89
M 226 89
N 225 89
O 227 90
P 226 90
Q 225 90
R 227 91
S 226 91
T 225 91

Which row in the following table correctly shows three nuclei of the same element, and three
nuclei that have the same number of neutrons?

same number
same element
of neutrons

A LMN RPN
B MPS RST
C OPQ MPS
D RPN OPQ

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28 A radioactive nucleus is formed by β– decay. This nucleus then decays by α-emission.

Which graph of nucleon number N plotted against proton number Z shows the β– decay followed
by the α-emission?

A B
236 236
N N
234 234

232 232

230 230
88 90 92 94 88 90 92 94
Z Z

C D
236 236
N N
234 234

232 232

230 230
88 90 92 94 88 90 92 94
Z Z

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29 What are the structures of the proton and of the neutron in terms of quarks?

proton neutron
up quark down quark up quark down quark

A 1 1 2 2
B 1 2 2 1
C 2 1 1 2
D 2 2 1 1
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30 In a television programme to illustrate scientific models, a presenter fires a gun many times at
a bale of hay. Two small cannon balls are embedded within the hay some distance apart from
each other.

The hay bale measures approximately 2 m × 2 m × 2 m and the cannon balls are made of iron,
approximately spherical, and about 5 cm in diameter.

What might the presenter be illustrating?

A α-particle scattering

B β– decay
C conservation of momentum
D double-slit interference
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31 A certain nuclide, uranium-235, has nucleon number 235, proton number 92 and neutron number
143. Data on four other nuclides are given below.

Which nuclide is an isotope of uranium-235?

nucleon number proton number neutron number

A 235 91 144
B 236 92 144
C 237 94 143
D 238 95 143
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32 During β– decay, which change takes place to the quark composition of the nucleus that emits the
β– particle, and which other particle is emitted?

other particle
quark change
emitted

A down to up antineutrino
B down to up neutrino
C up to down antineutrino
D up to down neutrino
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 238
33 A nucleus of uranium-238, 92 U , decays in a series of steps to form a nucleus of lead-206,
206
82 Pb , as shown.

238 206
92 U → ............ → 82 Pb

An α-particle or a β– particle is emitted during each step.

What is the total number of β– particles that are emitted?

A 6 B 8 C 10 D 16
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34 Which statement about α-particles is correct?

A α-particles emitted from a single radioactive isotope have a continuous distribution of

energies.

B α-particles have less ionising power than β-particles.

C The charge of an α-particle is +1.60 × 10–19 C.

D The speeds of α-particles can be as high as 1.5 × 107 m s–1.

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35 The nuclear equation shown has a term missing.

14 14 0
6C → 7N + −1 β + .............

What is represented by the missing term?

A an antineutrino
B an electron
C a neutrino
D a positron
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36 Which particle is a fundamental particle?

A electron
B hadron
C neutron
D proton
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37 Which elementary particle is a lepton?

A proton
B neutron
C electron
D quark
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38 How many down quarks are in a nucleus of hydrogen-3, 31 H ?

A 2 B 3 C 4 D 5
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39 What is the correct equation for β+ decay?

A neutron → proton + electron + electron antineutrino

B neutron → proton + electron + electron neutrino

C proton → neutron + positron + electron antineutrino

D proton → neutron + positron + electron neutrino

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40 In the α-particle scattering experiment, a beam of α-particles is aimed at a thin gold foil. Most of
the α-particles go straight through or are deflected by a small angle. A very small proportion are
deflected through more than 90°, effectively rebounding towards the source of the α-particles.

Which conclusion about the structure of atoms cannot be drawn from this experiment alone?

A Most of the atom is empty space.

B Most of the mass of an atom is concentrated in the nucleus.
C The nucleus contains both protons and neutrons.
D The nucleus is charged.
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211 210 212

41 Radon-211, 86 Rn , francium-210, 87 Fr , and radium-212, 88 Ra , are three nuclides.

How many neutrons does each nuclide have in its nucleus?

radon-211 francium-210 radium-212

A 86 87 88
B 125 123 124
C 211 210 212
D 297 297 300
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42 A neutron is composed of one up (u) quark and two down (d) quarks. When the neutron decays
to a proton, there is β-emission.

What is the change in the quark structure of the neutron due to the β-emission?

(The symbol for a neutrino is νe and for an antineutrino is νe .)

A d → u + β– + νe

B d → u + β– + νe

C u → d + β+ + νe

D u → d + β+ + νe
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43 A nucleus of magnesium-23 undergoes β+ decay, as represented by the nuclear equation shown.

23
12 Mg → X + β+ + νe

What is nucleus X?
22 22 23 23
A 11 Na B 13 Al C 11 Na D 13 Al
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44 Which list contains only leptons?

A electron, neutrino, positron

B electron, neutrino, proton
C electron, proton, neutron
D neutrino, neutron, positron
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45 Which statement about the alpha-particle scattering experiment provides evidence for the
existence of the nucleus?

A A tiny proportion of the alpha-particles are deflected through large angles.

B Slower alpha-particles are deflected through larger angles.
C The kinetic energies of the deflected alpha-particles are unchanged.
D The number of alpha-particles deflected depends on the thickness of the foil.

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46 Some particles are a combination of three quarks.

Which combination of quarks would not result in a particle with a charge of either +1.6 × 10–19 C
or zero?

A up, down, down

B up, strange, strange
C up, up, down
D up, up, up
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47 A nucleus of francium-221 ( 221 209
87 Fr) decays into a nucleus of bismuth-209 ( 83 Bi) in several steps.

Which particles could be emitted?

A 2 α-particles and 4 β– particles

B 2 α-particles and 4 β+ particles

C 3 α-particles and 2 β– particles

D 3 α-particles and 2 β+ particles

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48 Which equation describes the changes to the quark composition of a nucleus and the lepton
emission during the process of β+ decay?

A down → up + positron + electron neutrino

B down → up + positron + electron antineutrino
C up → down + positron + electron neutrino
D up → down + positron + electron antineutrino
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49 There are protons, neutrons and electrons in the simple model of an atom.

To which class (group), hadron or lepton, do these particles belong?

hadron lepton

A electron proton and neutron

B neutron proton and electron
C proton and electron neutron
D proton and neutron electron
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50 What is a correct estimate of the order of magnitude of the diameter of a typical atomic nucleus?

A 10–14 m B 10–18 m C 10–22 m D 10–26 m

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51 Which statement describes β– decay in terms of a simple quark model?

A A down quark changes to an up quark, and an electron and an electron antineutrino

are emitted.
B A down quark changes to an up quark, and a positron and an electron neutrino are emitted.
C An up quark changes to a down quark, and an electron and an electron antineutrino
are emitted.
D An up quark changes to a down quark, and a positron and an electron neutrino are emitted.

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52 Which statement about α-particles is correct?

A α-particles emitted from a single radioactive isotope have a continuous distribution of

energies.

B α-particles have less ionising power than β-particles.

C The charge of an α-particle is +1.60 × 10–19 C.

D The speeds of α-particles can be as high as 1.5 × 107 m s–1.

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53 The isotope 222

86 Rn decays in a sequence of emissions to form the isotope
206
82 Pb. At each stage
of the decay sequence, it emits either an α-particle or a β-particle.

What is the number of stages in the decay sequence?

A 4 B 8 C 16 D 20
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54 What is the approximate mass of a nucleus of uranium?

A 10–15 kg B 10–20 kg C 10–25 kg D 10–30 kg

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55 Radioactive decay is random.

What is meant by the term random?

A The decay of a nucleus can be predicted.

B The decay of a nucleus is unaffected by pressure.
C The decay of a nucleus is unaffected by temperature.
D The nucleus has a constant probability of decay per unit time. 9702/11/O/N/15/Q37

56 The nuclei of the isotopes of an element all contain the same number of a certain particle.

What is this particle?

A electron
B neutron
C nucleon
D proton 9702/11/O/N/15/Q38

57 Which statement about nuclei is correct?

A Different isotopic nuclei have different proton numbers.

B For some nuclei, the nucleon number can be less than the proton number.
C In some nuclear processes, mass-energy is not conserved.

D Nucleon numbers of nuclei are unchanged by the emission of β-particles.

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58 The diagram shows part of a radioactive decay chain in which the nuclide thorium-232 decays by
α-emission into radium-228. This nuclide is also unstable and decays by β-emission into a
nuclide of actinium. This process continues.

α β Y α
232 228 X 228 224
90Th 88Ra 89 Ac 90Th Z
What are X, Y and Z?

X Y Z

A 228 α Th
B 228 β Ra
C 232 α Th
D 232 β Ra
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59 A material contains a radioactive isotope that disintegrates solely by the emission of α-particles at
a rate of 100 s–1.

Which statement about this material is correct?

A The number of atoms in the material diminishes at a rate of 100 s–1.

B The number of neutrons in the material diminishes at a rate of 100 s–1.
C The number of nucleons in the material diminishes at a rate of 400 s–1.
D The number of protons in the material diminishes at a rate of 100 s–1.

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60 A radioactive nucleus emits an α-particle or a β-particle, creating a product nucleus.

Which decay process could create the product nucleus stated?

radioactive nucleus decay product nucleus

226 224
A 88 Ra α 86 Rn
238 242
B 92 U α 94 Pu
228 228
C 88 Ra β 87 Fr
231 231
D 90Th β 91Pa

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61 Two α-particles with equal energies are fired towards the nucleus of a gold atom.

Which diagram best represents their paths?

A B

gold nucleus gold nucleus

C D

gold nucleus gold nucleus

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62 When a nucleus emits an α-particle, how do the proton number and the nucleon number of the
original nucleus change?

proton number nucleon number

A –4 –2
B –2 –2
C –2 –4
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D +1 no change

63 A simple theory of α-particle scattering by a thin metal foil uses the four assumptions given
below.

Which assumption is exact and is not an approximation?

A Each α-particle interacts with just one nucleus.

B The α-particles lose no kinetic energy when they are deflected.

C The metal nuclei do not recoil.
D Total momentum is conserved. 9702/13/O/N/15/Q40
64 What is a proton?

A a hadron
B a particle consisting of two down quarks and one up quark
C a positive fundamental particle
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D a positive lepton

65 What are the correct descriptions of a γ-ray and a β– particle?

γ-ray β– particle

A high-speed electron electromagnetic radiation

B electromagnetic radiation helium-4 nucleus
C electromagnetic radiation high-speed electron
D high-speed electron helium-4 nucleus
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66 In a radioactive decay series, three successive decays each result in a particle being emitted.

The first decay results in the emission of a β– particle. The second decay results in the emission
of an α particle. The third decay results in the emission of another β– particle.

β– α β–

P Q R S

Nuclides P and S are compared.

Which statement is correct?

A P and S are identical in all respects.

B P and S are isotopes of the same element.
C S is a different element of lower atomic number.
D S is a different element of reduced mass. 9702/11/O/N/16/Q40
 42
67 The calcium nuclide 20 Ca is formed by β– decay.

What are the nucleon (mass) number and proton (atomic) number of the unstable nuclide that
underwent β– decay to form the calcium nuclide?

nucleon number proton number

A 41 19
B 41 21
C 42 19
D 42 21
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68 Which diagram represents the structure of an antineutron?

A B

key
u u u up quark
d u d down quark
d d u up antiquark
d down antiquark

C D

u u
d d

d u

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69 An astatine nucleus has a nucleon number of 218 and a proton number of 85. It decays to form a
polonium nucleus, emitting a β– particle and an α-particle in the process.

What are the nucleon number and the proton number of this polonium nucleus?

nucleon number proton number

A 214 83
B 214 84
C 215 83
D 216 82
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70 What is the quark composition of a hydrogen-3 nucleus, 31H ?

number of quarks
up down

A 4 5
B 5 4
C 5 7
D 7 5
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71 The diagram shows a sequence of radioactive decays involving three α-particles and a
β– particle.

α β– α α
237
93 Np Q R S T

What is nuclide T?
225 231 225 229
A 88 Ra B 88 Ra C 90 Th D 90 Th

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72 Which combination of up (u) and down (d) quarks forms a neutron?

A uuu B uud C udd D ddd

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73 Each option shows the number of neutrons, protons and electrons in two atoms, some of which
are ionised.

Which pair of atoms in the table are isotopes of the same element?

neutron proton electron

A 20 20 17 19 20 20
B 28 28 23 24 23 24
C 34 36 29 29 29 28
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D 40 42 32 31 32 32

74 Which combination of up (u) and down (d) quarks forms a proton?

A uuu B uud C udd D ddd

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75 A nucleus emits a β– particle.

What is the change to the proton number and to the nucleon number of the nucleus?

proton number nucleon number

A –1 +1
B 0 –1
C +1 –1
D +1 0 9702/11/O/N/18/Q39

37
76 How many up quarks and how many down quarks are in a nucleus of the nuclide 17 Cl ?

up quarks down quarks

A 51 60
B 54 57
C 57 54
D 60 51 9702/11/O/N/18/Q40
77 A proton in a nucleus undergoes β+ decay. One of the products is a neutron.

What are the other products?

A an electron and a neutrino

B an electron and an antineutrino
C a positron and a neutrino
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D a positron and an antineutrino

78 A certain type of hadron has zero charge. It is composed of a down quark, a strange quark and
one other quark.

What could be the other quark?

A up
B down
C strange
D anti-strange 9702/12/O/N/18/Q40