The table gives information about the parent nucleus and the final daughter nucleus in a radioactive decay chain.
The chain contains only alpha decays and beta-minus decays.
| nucleus | number of protons | number of neutrons |
|---|---|---|
| parent | 89 | 138 |
| final daughter | 82 | 125 |
Calculate the number of alpha decays and the number of beta-minus decays in the chain.
Explain whether changing the order of these decays would alter the final nucleus.
120 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Physics 6.3 Nuclear equations and decay, covering 6.3.1 Beta-minus and beta-plus decay, 6.3.2 Effects of decay on the nucleus, and 6.3.3 Balancing nuclear equations. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.