Topic Summaries
Properties of radiation and ionisation
Energy and power
Renewable energy and efficiency
Charge, current, and electric fields
Potential difference and resistors
Electricity
Volume and gases
States of matter and heat capacity
Radiation
Nuclear fusion and fission
Forces
Velocity and acceleration
Gravity and Newton's Laws
Moments and elastic potential
Stopping, braking, and momentum
Properties of waves
Electromagnetic waves
Refraction and lenses
Light, colour, and ray diagrams
Absorbing and emitting infrared radiation
Magnetic fields
Motor effect, generator effect, and transformers
Science skills: Experimental procedures
Science skills: Presenting and using data
Science skills: Measuring results
Energy and power
Renewable energy and efficiency
Charge, current, and electric fields
Potential difference and resistors
Electricity
Volume and gases
States of matter and heat capacity
Radiation
Nuclear fusion and fission
Forces
Velocity and acceleration
Gravity and Newton's Laws
Moments and elastic potential
Stopping, braking, and momentum
Properties of waves
Electromagnetic waves
Refraction and lenses
Light, colour, and ray diagrams
Absorbing and emitting infrared radiation
Magnetic fields
Motor effect, generator effect, and transformers
Science skills: Experimental procedures
Science skills: Presenting and using data
Science skills: Measuring results
- Certain nuclei are unstable, meaning they will undergo radioactive decay and emit radiation to become more stable.
- This radiation can ionise atoms, causing them to become ions.
- Activity is the rate of radioactive decay, measured in Becquerels (emissions per second).
- Detectors, such as a Geiger-Muller tube, can measure radioactivity by counting the number of particles entering it. This will give a count rate as the number of decays recorded per second.
- Nuclear radiation comes in multiple forms:
- Alpha particles \((\alpha)\) consisting of two protons and two neutrons released from the nucleus (the same as a helium nucleus).
- Beta particles \((\beta)\) consisting of a high-speed electron. A neutron will turn into a proton to release this.
- Gamma rays \((\gamma)\) consisting of electromagnetic radiation from the nucleus.
- A neutron \((\text{n})\) released from the nucleus.
| Radiation | Range in air | Stopped by | Ionising power |
| Alpha | 5 cm | Paper | Strong |
| Beta | Several metres | Aluminium sheet | Medium |
| Gamma | Near infinite | Thick lead | Weak |
- Radiation is harmful to the body as it can damage cells and tissues.
- Alpha radiation is the most damaging inside the body as it is the most ionising.
- Gamma radiation is the most damaging outside the body as it can penetrate the body from far away.
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