SFT1023

INTRODUCTION
TO
RADIATION
&
NUCLEAR PHYSICS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPlxnYMZ
Kww

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mw4Jm
MyYNMA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFXlzbn
9d9o
What is Radiation?
Where it comes from?
What are the examples of radiation?
What are the sources of radiation?
 Let’s watch this video……
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=a5at6maTbQ4&index=24&list=PLUeRfZ
MTYevy6QQ7xk3B_6JotBCFBRCis

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TCK1S
a0_Vc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRSMq-
0u4RI
RADIATION

Radiation is the process in which

energy is transferred by means of
electromagnetic waves.

A material that is a good absorber

is also a good emitter.

A material that absorbs completely

is called a perfect blackbody.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=nNzDXXUiqRs
The emissivity e is a dimensionless
number between zero and one. It is the
ratio of what an object radiates to what
the object would radiate if it were a
perfect emitter.
THE STEFAN-BOLTZMANN LAW OF RADIATION

The radiant energy Q, emitted in a time t by an

object that has a Kelvin temperature T, a surface
area A, and an emissivity e, is given by

Q  e T At 4

Stefan-Boltzmann constant

  5.67 10 J  s  m  K
8 2 4

Example

The supergiant star Betelgeuse has a surface

temperature of about 2900 K and emits a power of
approximately 4x1030 W. Assuming that Betelgeuse
is a perfect emitter and spherical,
find its radius.

Q  e T At4

4 r 2
 Q  e T 4 r t
4 2

Q t 4  1030 W
r 
4 eT 4
  
4  1 5.67  108 J s  m 2  K 4  2900 K 
4

 3  1011 m
– Sun: 5800 Kelvin, so lots of energy
– Earth: 255 Kelvin, so less energy
Applications

The halogen cooktop stove

creates electromagnetic
energy that passes through
the ceramic top and is
absorbed directly by the
bottom of the pot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDKlur3lzAM

http://www.explainthatstuff.com/halogenhobs.html
• Everything in nature emits light
• The type of light emitted depends on the
temperature of the source
– The walls of this room, our body
• IR
– Stars
• Visible and UV
– The Corona of the Sun (2,000,000 K)
• X-rays
 The Nature of Radiation
____________________________
• Two important physical principles
concerning the emission of
electromagnetic radiation
– A hot object emits radiation with short
wavelengths; a cool object emits radiation
with long wavelengths
– Hot objects radiate more energy than cooler
objects
 _____VIBGYOR__________
The Electromagnetic Spectrum
 Ultraviolet Radiation
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=EkMYu2FdxIA
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=kS0tzhDAAFo
Understanding the nature of
the atom
Radiation:

Energy propagated through

space in the form of waves
or particles.

LIGHT HAS A DUAL NATURE OR

THE WAVE-PARTICLE DUALITY
 Max Planck
• 1858 – 1947
• Introduced a “quantum
of action,” h
• Awarded Nobel Prize
in 1918 for discovering
the quantized nature
of energy
Planck was convinced that
blackbody radiation was
produced by submicroscopic
electric oscillators ( resonators)
could have only certain
discrete amounts of energy, E .
• Resolution: Energy is quantized:
E = hf
Where
E= quantized energy
f= frequency of resonator
h= Planck’s constant=6.626 x 10-34Js

– Absorption and emission in discrete quanta only

– Energy of quanta proportional to frequency
For small wavelength (high freq), quanta are large.
The resonators emit energy in
discrete units of light energy
called quanta (or photons).

They do so by from one quantum

state to another.
Sources of Radiation
(a) Electrons - Beta decay
A
Z X  A
Z 1Y  e 

A
Z X  Y  e 
A
Z 1


(b) Heavy Particles (charged)

- Alpha decay
- spontaneous fission

A 4
A
Z X Y  He
Z 2
4
2
(c) Electromagnetic (photons)
- Gamma rays following Beta decay

12
5 B C *  e  
12
6


12
6 C* C  
12
6

- x-rays
(d) Neutrons
- spontaneous fission
- radioisotopes
- reactions with accelerated charged particles

1
0 n  U  U *  X  Y  neutrons
235
92
236
92
• Ancient Greeks:
Earth, Air, Fire, Water
• By 1900, nearly 100
elements
• By 1936, back to three
particles: proton, neutron,
electron
• The structure of the atom is important in
understanding the origins and nature of
radiation and radioactivity
• Though the existence of the atom has
long been speculated, the modern theory
of the atom began to develop in the early
1900’s
 Elementary Particles
• Atoms
– From the Greek for “indivisible”
– Were once thought to the elementary particles
• Atom constituents
– Proton, neutron, and electron
– Were viewed as elementary because they are
very stable
– Quarks?
Rutherford’ s Model

In its natural state, an atom is electrically neutral.

Rutherford’s model

– Planetary model
– Based on results of thin foil
experiments
– Positive charge is concentrated
in the center of the atom, called
the nucleus
– Electrons orbit the nucleus like
planets orbit the sun
 Atoms Are Composite Objects
• Protons (+ electric charge), p
• Electrons (– electric charge), e
• Neutrons (no charge), n
• Proton and Neutron have about the same
mass
• Electron is about 2000 times less massive
than proton
• Electrical Forces produce attraction between
electrons and the protons in the nucleus (they
are oppositely charged)
Chemical elements are defined
by the number of protons in the
atom’s nucleus
• Hydrogen: 1 proton & 1 electron

proton
10-10 m

Cloud of
“electron probability”
Periodic Table: Classification
• Nonmetals, Metals, Metalloids, Noble gases
 Ions

• When atoms lose or gain electrons, they

become ions.
– Cations are positive and are formed by elements
on the left side of the periodic chart.
– Anions are negative and are formed by elements
on the right side of the periodic chart.
 Atomic
Lecture
Spectra
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDuPH_7n4l0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=h3E9jNDnrDo
At the beginning of the 20th century,
Failure of classical physics in
explaining the characteristics of
atomic spectra.
Why did atoms of a given element
emit only certain spectral lines?
• Allsubstances at a given T emit
thermal radiation at continuous
distribution of wavelengths.
• depends on the temperature and
properties of the substance.
• In sharp contrast to this continuous
distribution spectrum is the discrete
line spectrum as emitted by a low-
pressure gaseous element subject to
electric discharge.
• Examined with a spectroscope -
consist of a few bright lines of
pure color

• Wavelengths of the line

spectrum are characteristic of
the element emitting the light.
 Emission Spectra

• A gas at low pressure has a voltage applied to it

• A gas emits light characteristic of the gas
• When the emitted light is analyzed with a
spectrometer, a series of discrete bright lines is
observed
– Each line has a different wavelength and color
– This series of lines is called an emission spectrum
Examples of Emission Spectra
• Radiation is emitted by the atom
when the electron “jumps” from a
more energetic initial orbit to a lower
orbit ~ photon.
• The frequency of the photon
emitted in the jump is related to the
change in the atom’s energy and is
not equal to the frequency of the
electron’s orbital motion.
• In 1913, Neils Bohr stated that the
classical theory didn’t apply to orbiting
electrons
• Bohr based his theory on two postulates:
– electrons can only occupy specific energy
levels
– an atomic electron can only change
energy (i.e., give off or absorb) by
changing from one level to another
 Bohr’s Picture of the Atom
Before After Radiated
n = photon
5 Electron 5
4 in lowest 4
3 “allowed” 3
2 energy level 2
1 1
(n=1)

Electron
in excited
state Electron
(n=5) falls to the
Allowed Orbits lowest
energy level
Note: There are many more energy levels beyond n=5, they are omitted for simplicity
 The frequency of the emitted
radiation is:

Ei – Ef = hf
Ei = the energy of the initial state
Ef = the energy of the final state
h = Planck’s constant
= 6.626 x 10-34 Js
 Specific Energy Levels
• The ionization energy is the energy
needed to completely remove the electron
from the atom
– The ionization energy for hydrogen is 13.6 eV
• The uppermost level corresponds to E = 0
and n  
Absorption and emission of radiation animation

http://bcs.whfreeman.com/universe7e/cont
ent/ch05/0503002.html

X-ray interaction on atom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4p47RBPiOCo
X-Ray
An X-ray
photograph of
a human hand
 X-Rays
• Electromagnetic radiation with short
wavelengths
– Wavelengths less than for ultraviolet
– Wavelengths are typically about 0.1 nm
– X-rays have the ability to penetrate most materials
with relative ease
• Discovered and named by Roentgen in 1895
 Production of X-rays

• X-rays are produced when high-

speed electrons are suddenly
slowed down
– Can be caused by the electron
striking a metal target
• A current in the filament causes
electrons to be emitted
• These freed electrons are
accelerated toward a dense
metal target
• The target is held at a higher
potential than the filament
 X-ray Spectrum

• The x-ray spectrum has

two distinct components
• Continuous broad
spectrum
– Depends on voltage
applied to the tube
– Sometimes called
bremsstrahlung
• The sharp, intense lines
depend on the nature of
the target material
Photoelectric Effect
• light is incident on certain metallic
surfaces,
• electrons are emitted from the
surfaces (the photoelectric effect)
• the emitted electrons are called
photoelectrons.
- was made by Hertz,
Photoelectric effect
Compton effect
Compton Effect (1923)
- finally led to acceptance of photons
The effect: Scattering of x-ray by electron
changes the wavelength