Question

In one form of beta decay, potassium decays to produce calcium. What values do the letters represent?

Superscript 40 Subscript a Baseline Upper k right arrow Superscript b subscript 20 Baseline Upper C a + Superscript 0 Subscript c Baseline e

a is

b is

c is

The nuclear reaction is a
decay.

Answer 1

a = 19
b = 40
c = −1

The nuclear reaction is a beta-minus (β−) decay:

^40_19K → ^40_20Ca + ^0_{−1}e (or ^0_{−1}β).