Atomic structure and ionising radiation

EasyMedium
1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435363738394041424344454647484950515253545556575859606162636465666768697071727374
Question 40
Easy

A student sets up an experiment to investigate the radiation emitted by an americium-241 source, which is an alpha (α\alphaα) emitter.

A diagram showing an radioactive alpha source held in a clamp, directed towards a Geiger-Müller (G-M) tube. The G-M tube is connected to a digital counter showing a reading of 45. A single, thin sheet of paper is positioned vertically in the gap between the source and the G-M tube.

The sheet of paper is taken away, and the counter is reset to zero. A new count is taken over a period of 1 minute.

Explain why the new count is significantly greater than 45.

[2]

Atomic structure and ionising radiation Questions

  1. GCSE
  2. /Physics
  3. /Atomic structure and ionising radiation