Introduction

Radioactivity occurs because some nuclei are unstable and

spontaneously decay.

Important aspects of radioactivity:

Elements transform into other, different elements.
The energy released in radioactive decay comes
from mass which is converted to energy.
Radioactivity is a quantum phenomenon.
Radioactive decay is a statistical process.

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Radioactive Decay
Roentgen, Becquerel, and Curie are the names associated
with the discovery of radioactivity.
There are the five kinds of radioactive decay.

1. Gamma decay
This occurs when a nucleus has excess energy.
A gamma ray (packet of energy) is emitted from the nucleus.
The parent and daughter nuclides are the same.

87
Example: 87
38 Sr 38 Sr +
The * in the reaction denotes an excited nuclear state.

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Radioactive Decay
2. Alpha decay
This occurs when the nucleus is too large.
An alpha particle is emitted, reducing the size of the nucleus.
The daughter nucleus has an atomic number 2 less and an atomic
mass 4 less than the parent nucleus.
4
234
Example: 238
92 U 90 T h +2 He

3. Beta decay
This occurs because the nucleus has too many neutrons relative to
protons.
A neutron changes into a proton and emits an electron.
The daughter nucleus has an atomic number 1 more and an
atomic mass the same as the parent nucleus.
14

Example: 14
6 C 7 N + e
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Radioactive Decay
4. Electron Capture
Occurs when a nucleus has too many protons relative to neutrons.
A proton captures an electron and changes into a neutron.
The daughter nucleus has an atomic number 1 less and an atomic
mass the same as the parent nucleus.

64
Example: 64
29 Cu + e 28 N i

5. Positron emission
As with electron capture, this occurs because a nucleus has too
many protons relative to neutrons.
A proton emits a positron and changes into a neutron.
The daughter nucleus has an atomic number 1 less and an atomic
mass the same as the parent nucleus.
64
+
Example: 64
29 Cu 28 N i + e
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Radioactive Decay: Detection

Again, we will find something is missing from electron capture and

positron emission reactions.
Radioactive decay involves an unstable nucleus giving off a particle
or ray, and in the process becoming a more stable nucleus.
There are several ways to detect what the particle/ray.

One way is to detect the radiation after it passes through a magnetic

field. Positive and negative charged particles will be deflected in
different directions. Neutral particles or rays go straight through.
One simple way to distinguish different types of radiation is to see
what it penetrates. A piece of paper can stop alpha rays. Beta
particles can be stopped by a sheet of aluminum. Even lead may
not stop gamma rays.

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Activity of a radioactive sample

The activity of a radioactive sample is the rate at which atoms

decay.
If N(t) is the number of atoms present at a time t, then the
activity R is
dN
dt
The SI unit of activity is the becquerel:
1 becquerel = 1 Bq = 1 event/second.
R=

(1)

Another unit of activity is the curie (Ci) defined by

1 curie = 1 Ci = 3.70 1010 events/s = 37 GBq.

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Half Life
Experimental measurements show that the activities of radioactive
samples fall off exponentially with time.
The empirical law which describes this decay is
R = R0 et

(2)

Where is called decay constant. eqn(2) is empirical

Each radioactive nuclide has a different decay constant.
half-life, T1/2 , is the time it takes for the activity to drop by 1/2.
The half-life and decay constant are related, and the expression for
the half-life is found by substitution R0 /2 for the activity and T1/2
for the time it takes for the activity to become R0 /2.
1
R0 = R0 eT1/2
2
Which will give
T1/2 =
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0.693

Nuclear Transformations

(3)
(4)
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Half Life

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Activity Law
The empirical activity law can be derived if we assume that is
the probability per unit time for the decay of a nucleus. Then dt
is the probability that the nucleus will undergo decay in a time dt.
If a sample contains N undecayed nuclei, then the number dN that
will decay in the time dt is just N times the probability of decay,
dN = N dt

(5)

This equation can be integrated to give

N = N0 et

(6)

which you should recognize as looking like the activity law with
Ns instead of Rs. In fact, the activity R of a sample of N
radioactive nuclei is just R = N . eqn(6) is tested by theory.
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Mean life
Example: radon has a half-life of 3.8 days. If you start with 1 mg
of radon, after 3.8 days you will have 0.5 mg of radon. After 7.6
days, you will have 0.25 mg of radon. After 15.2 days, you will
have 0.125 mg of radon.
Notice that we are halving the amount of radioactive radon with
every half-life that passes, but after 3 half-lives we still have a
significant amount of radon left.
The mean lifetime of a nucleus is different than its half-life. It
turns out that
T1/2
1
T = =
= 1.44T1/2

0.693
The relation between half-life and mean life.
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Mean life

The mean lifetime of a radionuclide whose half-life is 5.0 h is

T = 1.44 T1/2 = (1.44)(5.00 h)= 7.20 h
since the activity of a radioactive sample is defined as
t
R = dN
dt = N0 e

Finally Activity
R = N

(8)

The relation between Activity and number of undecayed nuclei.

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Radiometric Dating
Carbon-14 dating is the best-known example. Carbon-14 is formed
in the atmosphere by the reaction
14 N +1 n 14 C +1 H
7
0
6
1
This reaction is continually taking place, and the carbon-14 atoms
are continually beta decaying to 14
7 N , with a half-life of 5760 years.
Because carbon-14 is continually being created and decaying, we
eventually reach a steady-state condition, where there is a
constant amount of carbon-14 in the atmosphere.
Living things take up carbon-14 as long as they are alive, and have
the same ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12 as does the atmosphere.
When living things die, they stop taking up carbon-14, and the
radioactive carbon-14 decays. If we compare the carbon-14 to
carbon-12 ratio in a dead organism with a living one, we can tell
how long the carbon-14 has been decaying without replenishing,
and therefore how long the organism has been dead.
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Radiometric Dating
Two assumptions behind carbon-14 dating
1

The carbon-14 to carbon-12 ratio in the atmosphere is the same

now as it was when the organism died.

Living organisms now are essentially the same in their carbon

content as were similar organisms long ago.
Rates and numbers are just related by the multiplicative factor ,
so the ratio RR0 is equal to NN0 .
The formula for radiocarbon dating,
t=

R0
1
ln( )

(9)

we need to know the activity R0 of the organism at death

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Radiometric Dating
Example 12.5 : A piece of wood from the ruins of an ancient
dwelling was found to have a 14 C activity of 13 disintegrations
per minute per gram of its carbon content. The 14 C activity
of living wood is 16 disintegrations per minute per gram.
How long ago did the tree die from which the wood sample
came ? ANSWER
If the activity of a certain mass of carbon from a plant or animal that
was recently alive is R0 and the activity of the same mass of carbon
from the sample to be dated is R, then
R = R0 et
To solve for the age t we proceed as follows: R0 = 16, R = 13, decay
constant = 0.693
5760
5760
ln(16/13) = 1.7 103 years
t = 1 ln( RR0 ) = 0.693
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Radiometric Dating
Radiocarbon dating is good for a few half-lives of carbon-14, or
50,000 or so years.
Geologists accordingly use radionuclides of much longer half-lives
to date rocks
A similar approach can be taken with radioactive potassium,
rubidium, or uranium, to go back much further in time (table).
With geological dating, we measure the numbers of radioactive
and stable daughter nuclei in a given sample.
Geological dating t = 1 ln(N0 /N )
If we assume the daughter nuclei came only from the original
radioactive nuclei, we can calculate the original number, and then
calculate the decay time.
We have to find parent-daughter decay schemes that give us
unique daughter nuclei; i.e., they could have only come from decay
of the parent. Thats why so few methods are available.
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Radiometric Dating

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Radiactive series
Most of the radionuclides found in nature are members of four
radioactive series.
Reason: The alpha decay reduces the mass number of a nucleus
by 4. Thus the nuclides whose mass numbers are given by A = 4n
can decay into one another in descending order of mass number.
The other three series have mass number specified by
A = 4n + 1, 4n + 2, 4n + 3.
The members of these series can decay into one another too.

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Uranium series

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Radiactive series
The sequence of alpha and beta decays that lead from parent to
stable end product.
The intermediate members of each series have shorter half-lives.
If we start with a sample of NA nuclei of parent nuclide A, after a
period of time an equilibrium situation will come about in which
successive daughter B, C, ... decays at the same rate as it is formed.
Radioactive equilibrium
NA A = NB B = NC C = ..

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Alpha Decay
Nuclei which contain 210 or more nucleons are so large that
the short range forces that hold them together are barely able
to counterbalance the mutual repulsion of the protons.
1

Why does an alpha particle escape from an unstable nucleus,

instead of individual neutrons and protons ?

The nucleus is a deep potential well. Does the alpha particle have
enough energy to escape?

Where does the alpha particles energy come from ?

To escape from nucleus, a particle must have kinetic energy

and the alpha-particle mass is sufficiently smaller than that of
its constituent nucleons for such energy to be available.

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Alpha Decay
Consider a parent nucleus, which emits an alpha particle, and a
daughter nucleus plus the alpha particle.
The initial mass is just the mass of the parent.
The final mass is the mass of the daughter+alpha. In the case of
alpha decay, this final mass must be less than the parent mass.
The energy released is the mass difference times c2 . This is the
energy available to get the alpha particle out of the nucleus.
Q = (mi mf m )c2

(10)

We need this big mass difference to provide the energy to get the
alpha out. An alpha particles mass is considerably smaller than
the sum of the masses of its constituents.
If you do the calculation for Q for neutrons or protons, you dont
end up with enough available energy to get them out of the
nucleus. In fact, you need to put energy in.
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Alpha Decay
Alpha decay : P=D++Q. Q-value of alpha particle is 5.42MeV
and this Q-value is approximately equivalent to the kinetic energy
K + KP = 5.42MeV. (Note that 1u = 931.5MeV/c2 ).
The momentum and kinetic energy are conserved in alpha decay.
Since the parent nucleus is at rest, p + pP =0. The implication of
this is that the momentum vectors of the alpha-particle and the
daughter nucleus must have equal magnitude and be in opposite
directions, so their magnitudes are equal, i.e. p = pP .

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Tunnel Theory of Alpha Decay

The potential well of the nucleus is about 25 MeV deep. Decay
alpha particles have energies that range from 4 to 9 MeV,
depending on the particular nuclide involved. How does the alpha
particle get out?
ANS: Quantum mechanics provides a straightforward explanation.
The alpha particle tunnels out (Theory is derived by Gamow)
The probability of tunnelling may be extremely small. An alpha
may try to tunnel out 1021 times per second, but take 1010 years
to escape. Thats something on the order of 1038 attempts to
escape before the alpha particle gets out.
In quantum physics, such an alpha particle can tunnel through the
potential barrier with a probability that decreases with the height
and thickness of the barrier.
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Tunnel Theory of Alpha Decay

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Tunnel Theory of Alpha Decay

The basic notions of the theory are
1
2

An alpha particle may exist as an entity within a heavy nucleus.

Such a particle is in constant motion and is held in the nucleus by a
potential barrier.
There is a small but definite likelihood that the particle may tunnel
through the barrier each time a collision with it occurs.

Decay probability, = T , is the number of times per second an

alpha particle within a nucleus strikes barrier around it. T is the
probability that the particle will be transmitted through the
barrier.
Suppose one alpha particle moves back and forth along a nuclear
diameter, Collision frequency = 2Rv 0 . Typical values of
v = 2 107 m/s, R0 = 1014 m and hence 1021 s1 .
The alpha particle knocks at its confining wall 1021 times per
second and yet have to wait for 1010 years to escape from the
nuclei !!!!
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Beta Decay
1

2
3

Beta decay occurs when a nucleus has too many neutrons relative
to protons. Emission of an electron by a neutron changes it to a
proton.
The electron immediately leaves the nucleus upon creation.
The energy spectrum of emitted electrons typically looks like this:

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Puzzling aspects Beta Decay

1

The electron energies observed in the beta decay of a particular

nuclide are found to vary continuously from 0 to a maximum value
KEmax characteristic of the nuclide. They lose some of it to the
nucleus on the way out. But this is not verified experimentally.
So, what happened to the missing energy?

Also, beta decay involves n p + e , but spins of all three

particles are 1/2. There is no way (in the above reaction) for the
net spin to be the same before and after; i.e., angular momentum
appears not to be conserved.

Also, conservation of linear momentum would require electrons

and nuclei to recoil in opposite directions, but this is also not
observed experimentally.

The solution to these problems is simple in hindsight; another

particle must be involved in beta decay.
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Discovery of neutrino in Beta Decay

1

In 1930 Pauli proposed a desperate remedy: if an uncharged

particle of small or zero rest mass and spin 1/2 is emitted in beta
decay together with the electron, the above discrepancies would
not occur.

This particle, later called the neutrino (little neutral one) by

Fermi, would carry off an energy equal to the difference between
KEmax and the actual KE of the electron.

The neutrinos linear momentum also exactly balances those of the

electron and the recoiling daughter nucleus.

Two kinds of neutrinos : Neutrino () and Antineutrino (

).

Beta decay:

A neutron outside a nucleus undergoes a negative beta decay into

a proton because its mass is greater than that of proton.
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Discovery of neutrino in Beta Decay

1

Positron emission is like beta decay, except a +e particle is emitted. In positron

emission, a proton is converted into a neutron, a positron, and, of course, a neutrino:
p n + e+ +

Competitive with positron emission is electron capture: P + e n +

The absorbed electron usually comes from the K shell, and later on an electron from
an outer shell drops into the empty state, emitting a gamma ray.
Electron capture occurs more often than positron emission in heavy elements because
the inner electrons are close to the nucleus.

There is another nuclear reaction by which a proton can change into a neutron. It is
called inverse beta decay: P + n + e+ and n + P + e
Note that the absorption of an antineutrino is equivalent to the emission of a
neutrino, so this reaction involves the same physical processes as beta decay.
Inverse beta decay was used to confirm the existence of neutrinos.

Both kinds of inverse beta decay have extremely low probabilities, which is why we
arent bothered by the billions of neutrinos passing through us right now.

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Gamma ray

We already mentioned how gamma decay is a means by which a

nucleus can get rid of excess energy.
An alternative to gamma decay is internal conversion, in which the
nucleus gives up its excess energy to an orbital electron.
The orbital electron then exits the atom with its excess kinetic
energy.
Finally, most gamma decay occurs in a very short time.
It is very unusual for nuclei to remain in excited states for a few
hours, although some do.
A long-lived excited nucleus is called an isomer.

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Cross Section
In the first part of this chapter, we considered radioactive nuclei
which can spontaneously decay.
In this section, we consider reactions which take place when
nuclei (or other particles) collide with high energies.
A cross section is basically just the probability that a projectile
will interact in some specified way with a target.
A geometrical cross section is like a target area. If the
projectiles path takes it through this area, an interaction takes
place. A geometrical cross section is based on some physical
dimension, which might be the atomic size (for x-rays) or the
nuclear size (for neutrons).
It may be that the effective cross section for some interaction is
different than the geometrical cross section. This effective cross
section is called the interaction cross section.
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cross section

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Cross Section
Consider the formula :
Interacting particles
aggregate cross section
=
incident particles
target area
dN
nAdx
=
= ndx
(11)
N
A
where N is the number of incident particles, dN is the number of
interacting particles, n is the number of target atoms per volume,
is the cross section for the particle to interact with the atoms, A
is the target area, and dx its thickness.
The unit of cross section (not an SI unit) is the barn:
1barn = 1b = 1028 m2 = 100f m2
If the projectiles are scattered away or somehow lost upon
interaction, we must write
dN
= ndx
(12)

N
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Mean free path

This equation is easy to integrate, and the number of projectile

particles which remain unscattered as a function of thickness x is
N = N0 enx

(13)

The cross section typically is a function of energy.

The mean free path , is the average distance a projectile travels
before interacting.
Mean free path:

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R nx
xe
dx
1
= R0 nx
=
n
dx
0 e

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(14)

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Reaction Rate
Reaction rate = N/t, is the rate at which the reaction occurs in a given sample of
the target material. Let us consider a sample in the form of a slab of area A and
thickness x that contains n atoms/m3 , with the particle beam incident normal to one
face of the slab.
Reaction rate:
N/t =

N0
N0 N
=
(1 enx )
t
t

(15)

N0
)nx
t

(16)

If the slab is thin nx 1, hence

N/t = (

The flux of the beam is the number of incident particles per unit area per unit time,
so A = N0 /t is their number per unit time. Because Ax is the volume of the sample,
the total number of atoms it contains is n = nAx. The reaction rate is therefore just
N/t = (A)(nx) = n

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Nuclear Reactions
An energetic projectile strikes a target.
If the projectile energy is large enough, it can reach and stick to
the target.
The result is a new, compound nucleus, which is probably
unstable.
After a relatively short period of time, the compound nucleus
decays, leaving a new nucleus.

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Nuclear Reactions
The peak in the cross section curve, (neutrons on cadmium)
represents a resonance, or an excited state nucleus.
The energy width of the resonance can be used to define the
lifetime of the resonant state.
Heisenbergs uncertainty principle says, Et ~/2. If we
consider the width of the resonance to be E and the lifetime
to be the uncertainty in time t, then
= ~

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Nuclear Fission
A typical fission reaction is:
235 U +1 n 236 U 140 Xe +94 Sr +1 n +1 n.
92
0
92
54
38
0
0
Several hundred MeV of energy, mostly in the form of kinetic energy of the fission
fragments, is also released.
Other reactions are possible where other numbers of neutrons are released.
Here are the important things:
Lots of energy is released by a single fission.
Each fission produces, on the average, 2.5 neutrons.
If, on the average, one of those 2.5 neutrons can be used to produce another fission,
you have a self-sustaining chain reaction.
How do you sustain a chain reaction?
What stops a chain reaction? Neutrons escape without causing fission (on the
average, more than 1.5 per fission escaping will stop a chain reaction).
To sustain a chain reaction, you trap the neutrons (e.g., surround the fissioning
material with a neutron reflector, such as beryllium).
Or you make the fissioning mass physically bigger in extent, so that neutrons have
more matter to pass through before they escape.

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Binding Energu Curve

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