Radioactivity

• A property of nuclei
• Due to inherent physical properties, a nucleus
may be not stable and likely to undergo a
nuclear transformation. This process can be
fast (short half life) or slow (long half life). In
any case, the time of transformation cannot
be predicted for an individual nucleus - it is a
random event which can only be adequately
described using statistics
Radioactivity

• Radioactivity is the process of radioactive

decay
• Radioactive decay – changes within the
nucleus of unstable nuclei to achieve a more
stable configuration. It is accompanied by
 Emission of particles
 Emission of electromagnetic radiation
 Release of energy
Half life t1/2
120
• Describes how fast a
100 particular nucleus
80
transforms
• The time it takes for
half the amount of a
60

40 radioactive material
20
to transform (often
also referred to as
decay)
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Radioactivity

• Activity (A) = rate of decay

• A= dN/dt = -N
= decay (disintegration constant)
N = no. of radioactive atoms present
• A(t)=A0e-t
Radioactivity

• Units of Activity
 Bq : 1 Bq = 1 disintegration/sec (dps)
 Curie : 1 Ci = 3.7x1010 dps

• Specific activity = activity of a

radioactive sample per unit mass
Metric Prefixes for SI System
Prefix Abbreviation Factor
tera T 1,000,000,000,000 1012
giga G 1,000,000,000 109
mega M 1,000,000 106
kilo k 1,000 103
centi c 0.01 10-2
milli m 0.001 10-3
micro m 0.000 001 10-6
nano n 0.000 000 001 10-9
pico p 0.000 000 000 001 10-12
Radioactivity

• The half life T1/2 is the time required for

half of the atoms in a sample to decay
and it is T1/2 = 0.693/
• The mean life Tavg of a radioactive
sample is the average time for the
atoms in a sample to decay
Tavg=1/=1.44 T1/2
Half life - logarithmic
plot
100

10

0.1
0 2 4 6 8 10
Radioactivity
Example:
 Problem: 27Co60 has a decay constant of
0.132y-1.
Find the activity in MBq of a sample
containing 1015 atoms
–Solution: A=N = 0.1317y-1. * 1015
31.54x106s/y
= 4.2 x106 atoms/s= 4.2 x106 Bq
= 4.2MBq
Radioactivity

Example:
 Problem: The decay constant for 27Co60, is
0.1317y-1, determine its
• Half life
• Mean life

–Solution: T1/2 =0.693/= 0.693/ 0.1317y-1=5.26y

Tavg=1.44T1/2 =1.44*5.26y=7.57y
Radioactivity
Alpha decay Ra226 (1600y)
 a (2n+2p)-helium
nucleus
 Atomic number of 4.59MeV
daughter element is
6% 4.78 MeV
reduced by 2
 Mass number of 94%
daughter element is 0.19
reduced by 4 MeV 222
Rn

Example: 88Ra226 86 Rn222 + 2 He4 + Q

Alpha decay

1600 years

222
226
Ra
88
Ra 86
Rn
Radioactivity
27Co
60
Beta decay (decay) (5.26y)
 N/Z >1 0.1% >99%
 n0 p+ + - +  Emax=0.1.48MeV Emax=0.31 MeV
(anti neutrino)
 Atomic number of g
daughter product
1.17 MeV
is increased by 1
 Mass number of
daughter product g
is unchanged
1.33 MeV
 E-mean =Emax/3
 Example:82Pb214
214+ 0 + Q
Ni60
83Bi
28
-1
Beta decay

5.26 years

60 60
27 Co 28 Ni
Radioactivity
Beta decay (positron emission)
 N/Z <1 9 F18
(109min)
 p1 n 0 + + +
(neutrino)
2moc2
 Atomic number of daughter EC
element is decreased by 1 97%
 Mass number of daughter 3%
product remains
unchanged
Emax=0.633MeV
 Threshold energy
=1.022MeV
8O18
 Example: 9F18 8O18 + 10 +
Q
Radioactivity

• Annihilation radiation
0.51MeV

+ +e- +

• E=mc2
0.51MeV
Radioactivity

Electron capture (EC) 9F18

(109min)
 N/Z <1
2moc2
 p1 + e - n0 + EC
(neutrino) 97%
 Atomic number of 3%
daughter element is
Emax=0.633MeV
decreased by 1
8O
18
Radioactivity
Isomeric transition 43Tc
99m
(6h)
142.6 keV
 Transition of nucleus from 1 140.5
excited state to near ground
state with no change in A,Z
3 2
and N(isomers)
 Nucleus formed after decay
is in excited state (and may
0
stay for a finite half life- 43Tc
99

metastable state) Radioactive 2x105y

Gamma transition

Excited state
 Radioactivity
Isomeric transition
 Internal conversion

• A process by which
the emitted gamma
ray does not escape
the electron cloud
but transfers to one
of the orbital
electrons sufficient
energy to eject it
from the atom IC electron
Radioactivity
Radioactive Decay Processes
Decay A Z N Comments
 A Z+1 N-1 E-mean =Emax/3

 A Z-1 N+1 E+mean= Emax/3

e capture A Z-1 N+1 Char. X-rays + Auger
Isomeric A Z N Metastable if T1/2 >10-6 sec
transition
 emission
Internal A Z N IC e, char. Radiation +
conversion Auger electrons
 decay A-4 Z-2 N-2
Radioactivity
• Radioactive equilibrium
– Transient equilibrium ( shorter lived
dauhgter)
– Secular equilibrium (daughter’s half-
life<<parent’s half life
Radioactivity
Natural radioactivity
 Radioactivity existing in nature belonging to any of the series

Name of typ Final Longest-lived

series e stable number
Nucleus Nucleu Half-life
s

Thorium 4n Pb208 Th232 1.39x1010

Neptuni 4n+ B1209 Np237 2.20x106
um 1
Uranium 4n+ Pb206 U238 4.50x109
-radium 2
Radioactivity
• Artificial Radioactivity
 Radioactivity produce by man
• Rutherford first man-made nuclear reaction
• Irene Curie-Joliot and Frederic Joliot
produced first radioactive product by
bombarding aluminum with alpha particles
from polonium source to study neutrons and
positrons;
13Al
27 +
2He 15P
30 +
0n
4 1

15P 14Si + 1
30 30
2.5min
Radioactivity
• Production of radionuclides
 Nuclides with excess neutrons
• Nuclear reactor or neutron generator 
emission
• (n,) reaction
• Ex:
27Co
59 +
0 n 27Co
1 60

27Co 28 Ni
60 60 + - + +isomeric

transition
Radioactivity

• More than 1300 different isotopes

• 25% are stable
• Unstable nuclei which have an excess of
protons or neutrons tend to attain a more
stable N/Z ratio by emitting particles I.e.,
negatrons or positrons and for compound
nuclei protons, neutrons or alpha
Radioactivity

• For a given set of nucleons a configuration

called ground state exist wherein the energy
is minimum. All other energy states are
known as excited states. Excited nuclei lost
energy by emission of photons
Radioactivity

• Production of radionuclides
 Nuclides with excess protons

• Particle accelerator, nuclear fission from

nuclear reactors, cyclotron
• Electron capture or positron emission
• (p,n) reaction
• Example: 5B11+ +p1 6C
11 +
20n
1