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5.2.3a Radioactive decay

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Question 10

Polonium-210 is radioactive. It can be represented as 84210Po^{210}_{84}\text{Po}84210​Po.

a.

For a neutral atom of polonium-210, state:

  1. the number of protons,
  2. the number of neutrons,
  3. the number of electrons.
[2]
b.

A polonium-210 nucleus decays by α\alphaα-particle emission to a lead (Pb\text{Pb}Pb) nucleus. Complete the equation for the decay of polonium-210:

84210Po→…… ^{210}_{84}\text{Po} \rightarrow \dots\dots 84210​Po→……
[2]
c.

Polonium-210 has a half-life of 138 days.

At a certain time, a sample contains 8.0×1078.0 \times 10^78.0×107 polonium nuclei.

Calculate the number of α\alphaα-particles emitted by the polonium nuclei in the following 414 days.

[3]
Markscheme

5.2.3a Radioactive decay Questions

  1. IGCSE
  2. /Physics
  3. /5.2.3a Radioactive decay

120 exam-style questions on CIE IGCSE Physics 5.2.3a Radioactive decay. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.

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