I History of Atom

II Nuclear and Radioactivity

III Natural Radioactive Sereis

IV Application of Radioactivity

V Interaction of Radiation with Matter

 History of the Atom - Timeline
Antoine Lavoisier
makesJ.J. Thomson
a substantial Niels Bohr
number discovers the
of contributions proposes
electron
to the and
field of James
the Bohr Chadwick
proposes the
Chemistry Model in discovered
Plum Pudding
1766 – 1844 1913 the neutron
Model in 1897
1871 – 1937
1887 – 1961 in in 1932
460 – 370 BC

1700s
1800s
1900s
0

Erwin
Democritus John DaltonErnest Rutherford Schrodinger
proposes proposes performs
his the Gold Foil
describes
the 1st atomic atomic theory
Experiment
in in 1909
the electron
1891 – 1974

theory 1743 – 1794 1803 cloud in 1926

1885 – 1962

Click on picture for more information

1856 – 1940
 Democritus
(460 BC – 370 BC)

Proposed an Atomic Theory (along

with his mentor Leucippus) which
states that all things are small, hard,
indivisible and indestructible
particles made of a single material
formed into different shapes and
sizes.

He named the smallest piece of

matter “atomos,”
meaning “not to be cut ”
 ATOMOS
-To Democritus, atoms were
small, hard particles that were all
made of the same material but
were different shapes and sizes.

-Atoms were infinite in number,

always moving and capable of
joining together

-Aristotle did not support his

atomic theory
Aristotle and Plato favorted
the earth, fire, air and
water approach to the
nature of matter. Their
ideas held a way
because of their
eminence as
philosophers. The
atomos idea was buried
for approximately
2000 years
 John Dalton
(1766 – 1844)
-In 1803, proposed the first scientific Atomic
Theory which states:
.All substances are made of atoms; atoms
are small particles that cannot be created,
divided, or destroyed.
.Atoms of the same element are exactly
alike , and atoms of different elements are
different
.Atoms join with other atoms to make new
substances
-Calculated the atomic weights of many various
elements (36 element)
-Was a teacher at a very young age
-Was color blind
John Dalton’s Periodic Table
 J.J. Thomson
(1856 – 1940)

.Proved that atom can be divided into

smaller parts
.While experimenting with cathode-ray
tubes, discovered corpuscles, which were
later called electrons
.Stated that the atom is neutral
.In 1897, proposed the Plum Pudding Model
which states that atoms mostly consist of
positively charged material with negatively
charged particles (electrons) located
throughout the positive material.
. Won a Nobel Prize.
 Plum pudding
Positively charged Negatively charged
porridge raisins (plums)
+
++ +
- - -
+ +
+ +
- - + -+
+
-+ +
-+
+
- +
10-10m
A Cathode Ray Tube
 Ernest Rutherford
1871 – 1937)
(

 In 1909, performed the Gold Foil Experiment

and suggested the following characteristics of the
atom:
o It consists of a small core, or nucleus, that
contains most of the mass of the atom
o This nucleus is made up of particles called
protons, which have a positive charge
o The protons are surrounded by negatively
charged electrons, but most of the atom is
actually empty space

 Did extensive work on radioactivity (alpha & beta

particles, gamma rays/waves) and was referred to
as the “Father of Nuclear Physics”
 Won a Nobel Prize
 Was a student of J.J. Thomson
 Was on the New Zealand $100 bill
Rutherford’s experiment Involved firing a stream of tiny positively charged
particles at a thin sheet of gold foil (2000 atoms thick)

Most of the positively charged “bullets” passed right

through the gold atoms in the sheet of gold foil
without changing course at all.

Some of the positively charged “bullets,” however, did

bounce away from the gold sheet as if they had hit
something solid.
He knew that positive charges repel positive charges.

A very few get deflected greatly , Even fewer get bounced

of the foil and back to the left.
-The atom similar to the solar system (the central
core around which the great distances negatively
charged electrons)

-The atom mostly vacuum (because The atom is

not solid and the size is too small for the size of the
nucleus The atom)

-The mass of the atom is concentrated in the

nucleus (because the mass of the electrons is very
small compared to the mass of the nucleus of
protons and neutrons components)
 Niels Bohr
(1885 – 1962)

-In 1913, proposed the Bohr Model,

which suggests that electrons travel around
the nucleus of an atom in orbits or definite
paths. Additionally, the electrons can jump
from a path in one level to a path in another
level (depending on their energy)

-Won a Nobel Prize

-Worked with Ernest Rutherfor

 Niels Bohr’s Model (1913)

Electrons orbit the

nucleus in circular
paths of fixed energy
(energy levels).
 Erwin Schrodinger
(1887-1961)

-In 1926, he further explained the nature

of electrons in an atom by stating that the
exact location of an electron cannot be
stated; therefore, it is more accurate to
view the electrons in regions called electron
clouds; electron clouds are places where the
electrons are likely to be found

-Did extensive work on the Wave formula

“Schrodinger equation”

-Won a Nobel Prize

Wave Model
 James Chadwick
(1891 – 1974)

-Realized that the atomic mass of

most elements was double the
number of protons  discovery of
the neutron in 1932

-Worked on the Manhattan Project

-Worked with Ernest Rutherford

-Won a Nobel Prize

 Progression of the Atomic Model

-
-
- - -
- -
- --+-
-
+ - - Electron Cloud

- -
-
-

The structure of an atom, according to: Democritus &

Ernest
Erwin
Neils
J.J. Schrodinger
Rutherford
Bohr
Thomson
James Chadwick
John Dalton
 The first 92 elements on the table exist naturally.
The rest –which extended to 118 elements- were created
by scientists in atomic nuclei collision with the aid of
particle accelerators.
 Isotopes
- Each element is characterized by atoms containing a fixed numbers of
protons .denoted by the atomic number Z , in the nucleus and an equal
numbers of orbital electrons to ensure the electrical neutrality
In addition to protons, the nucleus contains a variable number N of
electrically neutral neutrons.

- Atoms of an element with different number of neutrons , but fixed number

of protons are known as ISOTOPES (there are more than 3000 isotopes
known ,but about 10% of those are stable)

- Nuclides with the same N and different Z are called ISOTONES

- Nuclides with the same mass numbers A are known as ISOBARS.

Isotopes
are atoms of the same element that differ in the number of
neutrons in their nuclei. A nucleus with a particular composition
is called a nuclide and is represented by ZX A

where
X= chemical symbol of the
element
Z= atomic number
mass number or the number of
A= protons and neutrons in the nucleus

A nucleon is a neutron or proton; the mass number of

NOTE a nucleus is the number of nucleons (protons and

neutrons) it contains.
 Protons Neutrons Electrons
6 6 6

6 7 6

6 8 6

How many protons, neutrons and electrons in each of the

following:
protons neutrons electrons
23Na 11 12 11
14N
7 7
38Ar 7
18 20 18
35Cl
17 18 17
36Cl-1
17 19 18
56Fe
26 30 26
-Protons and neutrons are packed together tightly so that the
nucleus takes up only a tiny part of an atom.
-If an atom were the size of a football stadium, its nucleus
would be the size of a marble!
Despite taking little space, the nucleus contains
almost all the mass of the atom.
A proton or neutron has about 2,000 times the
mass of an electron.
 “Why do protons stay together
when positive charges repel each
other?”

The main reason is because of a

force called Strong Force.

Opposes the electrostatic

force.

35
The force that makes protons and neutrons
attract each other and stay together.
100 times
Only works when
stronger than the
electric force particles are close

Within the incredibly small nuclear size, the two strongest forces
in nature are pitted against each other. When the balance is
broken, the resultant radioactivity yields particles of enormous
energy
 The Strong Force is exerted by
anything with mass (protons and
neutrons) to attract other masses
together and works within a very
short distance.

it is not an inverse square force

like the electromagnetic force.

Neutrons act as insulation, since

they have no charge, but have the
strong force to bring other
nucleons (protons and neutrons)
together.
39
 Binding Energy
The experimental
observations show
that the mass of a
nucleus is always less
than the sum of
masses of its
constituent protons
and neutrons.

40
 This “missing mass” is called as Mass Defect. This “missing mass” is
converted to energy according to Einstein’s E=mc2 and this energy is
called as “Nuclear Binding Energy”. The greater the nuclear binding
energy, the more stable is the atom.

41
 Nucleus Binding Energy
We can define the binding energy of nucleus as it’s the energy
needed to separates the nucleus into it’s constituent component
nucleons .
43
 Nuclear stability
As a general rule, a nucleus
will need a neutron/proton
ratio of 3:2 (or 1.5:1) in order
to stay together.

This rule is more precise for larger

nuclei.

Of all known isotopes of

natural elements (about 1500),
only 250 of them are stable.
44
All of these stable isotopes
The numbers of nucleons that
have an atomic number in
represent completed nuclear
between 1 and 83. , Nucleons
energy levels -2, 8, 20, 28,
exist in different energy
50, 82, and 126- are called
levels, or shells, in the
magic numbers
nucleus.

45
 - Nuclei which do not fall on the line
of stability tend to be unstable or
“radioactive”

- They are called “radionuclides”

- A few radionuclides do fall on the line of
stability but their rate of decay is so slow that for
all practical purposes they are stable
46
 Unstable Nuclei

 Radionuclides undergo a process called radioactive

transformation

 In this process, the nucleus emits particles to adjust

its neutron (N) to proton (Z) ratio

 This change in the N to Z ratio tends to move the

radionuclide toward the line of stability
 All elements with atomic numbers greater than 83 are
radioisotopes meaning that these elements have unstable
nuclei and are radioactive. Elements with atomic numbers of
83 and less, have isotopes (stable nucleus) and most have at
least one radioisotope (unstable nucleus). As a radioisotope
tries to stabilize, it may transform into a new element in a
process called transmutation.
 Discovery of radioactivity
In 1896, Henri Becquerel
accidentally left pieces of
uranium salt in a drawer on a
photographic plate. When he
developed the plate, he saw
an outline of the uranium salt
on it. He realized that it must
have given off rays that
darkened the film.
 Discovery of Po and Ra
Marie Skłodowska Curie
(1867-1934)
Marie, and her husband Pierre,
analyzed a ton of Uranium ore.
After removing the uranium
the radioactivity increased.
This led to the discovery of
Polonium, more radioactive
than uranium, named after
here home country of Poland.
After removing the Polonium
the radioactivity increased
again. This led to the
discovery of a small amount in
their hand of Radium, so
radioactive that it glowed in
the dark.
 Radioactive Decay
spontaneous disintegration of a nucleus into a slightly lighter & more
stable nucleus, accompanied by emission of particles, electromagnetic
radiation or both
In this process, an unstable “parent” nuclide P is
transformed into more stable “daughter”
nuclide D through various processes .
 Types of Radioactive Decay
Alpha (α)
There are many types of decay
Beta – minus (β ̄ )
decay
radioactive decay such as :

Gamma Beta-plus (β+ )

emission (𝛾) decay Electron capture ( εc
)

nternal Special beta-decay

Isomeric
conversion (IC) processes (β-n,β+α,β+p)
transition (IT)

Neutron decay
Spontaneous
Proton decay (P) (N)
fission (SF)
Alpha particle emissions:
Helium nucleus: 2 protons and 2
neutrons, +2 charge.
For large, unstable nucleus which
needs to reduce both the number
of protons and the number of
neutrons.

Example:
210
84 Pο  206
82 Pb  He
4
2
Beta particle emissions:
Electron emission, -1 charge.
For unstable nucleus which needs to
reduce the number of neutrons.
A neutron is converted into a proton
and an electron, the electron is given
off as a beta particle.

Example:
14
6 C N β14
7
0
1
Beta-plus emissions:
Positron emission, +1 charge.
For unstable nucleus which needs to
reduce the number of protons.
A proton is converted into a neutron
and a positron, the positron is emitted.

Example:
10
6 C B 10
5
0
1 β
Gamma emissions:
High energy electromagnetic waves
(photons) like visible light, except with
a shorter wavelength.

For high energy nucleus when it jumps

down from an excited state to a ground
state.

Example:
3
2 He  He  γ
3
2
 Electron capture:

An inner orbit electron combines with a proton and

forms a neutron.

For unstable nucleus which needs to reduce the

number of protons.

Example:
7
4 Be  0
1 e  Li
7
3
Electron capture •
 Type of Radioactivity

Natural Artificial l

-Spontaneous -Collision of two

emission.
-By unstable nuclei of
particles or
electromagnetic
radiation, or both.
-Resulting in the
formation of a stable
isotope.
particles or collision of
a particle like neutron
with the atomic
nucleus.
-May generate the
unstable element from
a stable one.
-Nuclear Fission
-Nuclear Fusion
 What is a
And How many radioactive
series? series ?
 What is a decay series?

Sometimes when a nucleus decays, the product is not stable

(radioactive isotope) and it will decay.

The series of disintegration until a stable nuclide is reached is called a

decay series.

𝐴1 → 𝐴2 → 𝐴3 → ⋯ → 𝐴𝑛
𝜆1 𝜆2 𝜆3 𝜆𝑛

Stable end
product
In general
𝜆1 > 𝜆2 > 𝜆3 > ⋯ > 𝜆𝑛

Radioactive series
How many series?

There are four natural decay chains:

Uranium series: 23892U  20682Pb

Actinium series : 23592U  20782Pb
Thorium series : 23290Th  20882Pb
Neptunium series : 24194Pu  20982Pb

MASS SERIES PARENT HALF-LIFE STABLE END PRODUCT

NUMBER yr

Thorium series 232 Th 1.39× 1010 208 Pb

4n 90 82

Neptunium 241 Pu 2.25× 106 209 Pb

4n+1 94 82
series
Uranium series 238 U 4.51× 109 206 Pb
4n+2 92 82

Actinium series 235 U 7.07× 108 209 Pb

4n+3 92 82
70 annexeh@yahoo.co.in
 The members of this
series are not
presently found in
headed by
nature because the
Neptunium-241
half-life of the longest
lived isotope in the
series is short
compared to the age
of the earth

94Pu 
241 209
82Pb
In fact
Three radioactive series were recognized (Uranium , Actinium and
Thorium)

In which
heavy elements loss mass and changed their
atomic number in successive steps.

The changes ending only when the element

became a stable isotope of lead
 Radioactivity
series
Uranium, Actinium , and Thorium occur in three natural decay
series, headed by uranium-238, uranium-235,
and thorium-232, respectively

Importance

In Nature
The Radionuclides in these three series are
approximately in a state of equilibrium, in which
the activities of all radionuclides within each
series are nearly equal.
• If the half life of the parent is longer than that of the
daughter , then after a certain time a condition of
equilibrium will be achieved .
• that is the ratio of the daughter activity to the parent
activity will become constant .
• In addition the decay rate of the nuclide is then
governed by the half life or disintegration rate of the
parent
 headed by
uranium-238

parent Daughter

238
92 U  206
82Pb
 headed by
uranium-235

parent Daughter

235 U
92  20782Pb
 headed by
thorium-232

parent Daughter
208
90Th  82Pb
232
 I Terresial Earth Crust

Rocks and soil

II  Uranium Cosmic Ray
Radon
 Thorium
 Actinium Distant supernovae
III Internal Sources
 RADIATION

Ionizing Ionizing Non-Ionizing

energy transferred may be
photons
sufficient to knock an electron particle
out of an atom.

𝜸 − 𝒓𝒂𝒚 
charged uncharged
𝒙 − 𝒓𝒂𝒚

Heavy light
• 𝜶 − 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒆
• Electron
• Proton (p)
• positron
  The stopping power (S) the
loss of energy from a
particle over a path length
(dx).

several terms are used to

describe the change in energy
of a particle and the absorbing
medium  Linear energy.

 Range.
Photon-beam Interactions
Process Definition

Attenuation Removal of radiation from the beam by the matter. Attenuation may
occur due to scattering and absorption

Absorption The taking up of the energy from the beam by the irradiated material. It
is absorbed energy, which is important in producing the radiobiological
effects in material or soft tissues.

Scattering refers to a change in the direction of the photons and its contributes to
both attenuation and absorption

Transmission Any photon, which does not suffer the above processes is transmitted.
Attenuation of a photon beam by an absorbing material is
caused by five major types of interactions :

Coherent
scattering

Photo Photoelectric
disintegration effect

Attenuation

Pair Compton
production effect
 Interaction of light charged
with matter particles
 Interaction of electron with matter

When the energetic electrons penetrate the target material

The electron lose their kinetic energy by to mechanisms

Collision loss Radiative loss

 Inelastic collisions
 Elastic collisions
  Inelastic collisions Of electrons
• when the incident electron penetrate the
target atom , the electron lose their energy .
• The interaction with bound atomic electron

 elastic collisions Of electrons

In this collision , the electron collides with a particle of

identical mass (atomic number) but in this case there is no
lose in the energy.
  Radiative collisions of electron
When an energetic electron penetrates the
target material (atom) and losses very lose to
the nucleus in the target material .

It is deviated by the electromagnetic

interaction so the incident electron losses
much kinatic energy and the proton will be
emitted .
  The interaction of positron
• When the positron penetrates the target atom
Two mechanisms may be occured

 The formation of
 Free annhilation
positronium atom
 Interaction of heavy charged particles
with matter
 Interaction of 𝜶 − 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒆 & 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓

The heavy charged particles interact with matter through

coulomb forces between their positive charge and the
negative charge of the orbital electrons of the absorbed
material .

The heavy charged particles pass through the target atom

and give up a part of into kinetic energy .
 Interaction of photon (𝛾 − 𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑠)
with matter

 Photoelectric effect

 Compton scattering

 Pair production
 Photoelectric
effect
 When the 𝛾 − 𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑠 abound
electron of the target material , so the
electron absorbs all the energy of the
incident 𝛾 − 𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ it is enough
to eject the electron from into orbit and
completely leave the atom

 the kinetic energy to the photo-electron.

K. E = h𝝊 _ w

W = The binding energy of the electron

and ½ mν2 is the kinetic energy of the
photo electron. Fig. : The photo electric effect

𝛾 − 𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑒

The incident 𝛾−𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜
𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡h𝑒 𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑚.
K.E=h𝝊 − 𝒉𝝊′
Before interaction After interaction
Scattered Photon
- - - -

- -
- -
Incoming photon Electron is
Collides with ejected from atom
electron
 The free electron takes a part of energy of the incident 𝛾
− 𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝛾
− 𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝜃
 The atomic electron has a sufficient energy which lead to
the ejection of this electron from atom and it is scattered
by an angle 𝜙 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝛾 − 𝑟𝑎𝑦

If the angle by which the electron is scattered is

Φ and the angle by which the photon is
scattered is θ, then the following formula
describes the change in the wavelength (δλ)of
the photon:

λ2 – λ1 = δλ = 0.024 ( 1- cos θ) Å
 Pair Production:
When the photon with energy in excess of 1.02 MeV passes close to
the nucleus of an atom, the photon disappears, and a positron and
an electron appear.

 Annihilation:
These two particles collide, converting to 2 photons with equal energy of 511 kev.
 When an x-ray or γ ray beam passes through a medium, interactions
occur between the beam and the matter.

Initially the electrons are ejected from the atoms of the absorbing
medium which in turn, transfer their energy by producing ionization
and excitation of the atoms along their path.

If the absorbing medium consists of body tissues,

sufficient energy may be deposited within the cells,
destroying their reproductive capacity.

most of the absorbed energy is converted into heat,

Howeve producing no biologic effect.
 Photon

Matter

Photo electric Compton Pair

effect Scatter Production

High Speed Electrons

Matter

Ionization Excitation Heat

X-Rays Chemical Effects

Biological Effects
-When mono-energetic (mono-
chromatic) radiation passes
through any material, a reduction
in the intensity of the beam occurs,
This is known as attenuation.

-Attenuation occurs
exponentially, i.e. a given Fig : Semilog plot showing exponential
attenuation of a monoenergetic photon
fraction of the photons is beam.

removed for a given thickness

of the attenuating material.
 Any
Questions?