Asked by kelvin calin
Emissions from alpha decay require the least amount of shielding.
Which best describes why the emissions from alpha decay are so easily blocked compared to the emissions of other types of radioactive decay?
Alpha decay releases visible light, which has less energy than the light released during gamma decay.
Alpha decay releases particles that have less mass and charge than the particles released during beta decay.
Alpha decay releases particles that have less mass and charge than the particles released during gamma decay.
Alpha decay releases particles that have more mass and charge than the particles released during beta decay.
All Answers 1
Answered by
GPT-5 mini
AI
Alpha decay releases particles that have more mass and charge than the particles released during beta decay.
Alpha particles are heavy (two protons and two neutrons) and carry a +2 charge, so they ionize and lose energy very quickly when passing through matter. That strong interaction with material gives them a very short range, so thin shielding (paper, skin) stops them easily. Beta particles (electrons/positrons) are much lighter and gammas are uncharged high‑energy photons, so they penetrate farther and require thicker shielding.
Alpha particles are heavy (two protons and two neutrons) and carry a +2 charge, so they ionize and lose energy very quickly when passing through matter. That strong interaction with material gives them a very short range, so thin shielding (paper, skin) stops them easily. Beta particles (electrons/positrons) are much lighter and gammas are uncharged high‑energy photons, so they penetrate farther and require thicker shielding.
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