Question

What are the three types of ionizing radiation?

Answer 1

The three types of ionizing radiation are:

1. Alpha radiation: In α-decay, the mass number of the product nucleus (daughter nucleus) is four less than that of the decaying nucleus (parent nucleus), while the atomic number decreases by two.
   ${}_{\mathrm{Z}}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{X}\to {}_{\mathrm{Z}-2}{}^{\mathrm{A}-4}\mathrm{Y}+{}_2{}^4\mathrm{He}$
   Where, ${}_{\mathrm{Z}}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{X}$ is the parent nucleus, $\mathrm{A}$ is the total number of nucleons, $\mathrm{Z}$ is the total number of proton ,${}_{\mathrm{Z}-2}{}^{\mathrm{A}-4}\mathrm{Y}$is the daughter nucleus, ${}_2{}^4\mathrm{He}$ is the released alpha particle
2. Beta radiation: A beta particle is often referred to as an electron, but it can also be a positron. If the reaction involves electrons, nucleus shed out neutrons one by one.
   ${}_{\mathrm{Z}}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{X}\to {}_{\mathrm{Z}+1}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{Y}+{}_{-1}{}^0\mathrm{e}$
   Where, ${}_{\mathrm{Z}}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{X}$ is the parent nucleus, $\mathrm{A}$ is the total number of nucleons, $\mathrm{Z}$ is the total number of proton ,${}_{\mathrm{Z}+1}{}^{\mathrm{A}}\mathrm{Y}$is the daughter nucleus, ${}_{-1}{}^0\mathrm{e}$ is the released beta particle
3. Gamma radiation: The nucleus has orbiting electrons which indeed have some energy, and when an electron jumps from a level of high energy to a level of low energy, there is an emission of a photon. These photons shooted out from an atom are the gamma radiation.