Atomic Structure
This subatomic particle has a positive charge and is found in the nucleus.
What are protons?
The process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by emitting radiation.
What is radioactive decay?
These are the specific distances or regions where electrons are likely to be found, orbiting the nucleus.
What are electron shells?
The spontaneous process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by emitting radiation.
What is radioactive decay (or radioactivity)?
The tiny, dense, positively charged center of an atom, containing protons and neutrons.
What is the nucleus?
The first electron shell can hold a maximum of this many electrons.
What is two electrons?
Carbon-14 has a half-life of about 5,730 years. After two half-lives, this percentage of the original sample would remain.
What is 25%?
This neutral subatomic particle has a mass of approximately 1 amu and is found in the nucleus.
What are neutrons?
This half-life is used in archeology to determine the age of ancient organic materials, like wood or bones.
What is carbon-14 (C-14) half-life (or radiocarbon dating)?
The half-life of iodine-131 is 8 days. If you start with a 10 g sample, this amount will remain after 16 days.
What is 2.5 grams (10g -> 5g -> 2.5g)?
A horizontal row on the periodic table is known as this.
What is a period?
This type of decay involves the conversion of a neutron into a proton and the emission of an electron.
What is beta decay?
Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons.
What are isotopes?
This type of radiation is composed of two protons and two neutrons (a helium nucleus) and has a +2 charge.
What is alpha decay (or an alpha particle)?
Scientists use radiation to trace the movement of substances in the body or in industrial systems by using these special atoms.
What are radioactive tracers (or radioisotopes)?
This term describes two or more atoms (of the same or different elements) joined together.
What is a molecule?
This technique uses the known half-life of carbon-14 to estimate the age of ancient organic materials.
What is radiocarbon dating?
Metallic character generally increases as you move in this direction across a period and in this direction down a group.
What is from right to left, and top to bottom (or just left and down)?
Short half-life radioisotopes are specifically useful in this field of science because they decay quickly and do not remain in the body for long periods.
What is medicine (or medical imaging/treatment)?
This high-energy radiation has no mass or charge and often accompanies other types of decay.
What is gamma decay (or gamma rays)?
An atom of element Q has 19 protons, 19 electrons, and 20 neutrons. This is the name of the element.
In this specific type of decay, the atomic number of the atom increases by one, but the mass number stays the same.
What is beta decay?
This is the electron configuration for an atom with 2 electrons in the first shell and 8 in the second.
What is a 2, 8 configuration?
If you start with 100 grams of a substance with a half-life of 2 minutes, this much will be left after 6 minutes have passed.
What is 12.5 grams?
Carbon-12 and Carbon-14 are examples of this; they are the same element but have different mass numbers.
What are isotopes?