|
Transient Equilibrium
In nuclear physics, transient equilibrium is a situation in which equilibrium is reached by a parent-daughter radioactive isotope pair where the half-life of the daughter is shorter than the half-life of the parent. Contrary to secular equilibrium, the half-life of the daughter is not negligible compared to parent's half-life. An example of this is a molybdenum-99 generator producing technetium-99 for nuclear medicine diagnostic procedures. Such a generator is sometimes called a '' cow '' because the daughter product, in this case technetium-99, is milked at regular intervals. Transient equilibrium occurs after four half-lives, on average. Activity in transient equilibrium The activity of the daughter is given by the Bateman equation: :A_d = A_P(0)\frac \times (e^-e^) \times BR + A_d(0)e^, where A_P and A_d are the activity of the parent and daughter, respectively. T_P and T_d are the half-lives (inverses of reaction rates \lambda in the above equation modulo ln(2)) of the parent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nuclear Physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the atom as a whole, including its electrons. Discoveries in nuclear physics have led to applications in many fields. This includes nuclear power, nuclear weapons, nuclear medicine and magnetic resonance imaging, industrial and agricultural isotopes, ion implantation in materials engineering, and radiocarbon dating in geology and archaeology. Such applications are studied in the field of nuclear engineering. Particle physics evolved out of nuclear physics and the two fields are typically taught in close association. Nuclear astrophysics, the application of nuclear physics to astrophysics, is crucial in explaining the inner workings of stars and the origin of the chemical elements. History The history of nuclear physics as a discipl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Radioactive
Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is considered radioactive. Three of the most common types of decay are alpha decay ( ), beta decay ( ), and gamma decay ( ), all of which involve emitting one or more particles. The weak force is the mechanism that is responsible for beta decay, while the other two are governed by the electromagnetism and nuclear force. A fourth type of common decay is electron capture, in which an unstable nucleus captures an inner electron from one of the electron shells. The loss of that electron from the shell results in a cascade of electrons dropping down to that lower shell resulting in emission of discrete X-rays from the transitions. A common example is iodine-125 commonly used in medical settings. Radioactive decay is a stochastic (i.e. random) process ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Isotope
Isotopes are two or more types of atoms that have the same atomic number (number of protons in their nuclei) and position in the periodic table (and hence belong to the same chemical element), and that differ in nucleon numbers (mass numbers) due to different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei. While all isotopes of a given element have almost the same chemical properties, they have different atomic masses and physical properties. The term isotope is formed from the Greek roots isos ( ἴσος "equal") and topos ( τόπος "place"), meaning "the same place"; thus, the meaning behind the name is that different isotopes of a single element occupy the same position on the periodic table. It was coined by Scottish doctor and writer Margaret Todd in 1913 in a suggestion to the British chemist Frederick Soddy. The number of protons within the atom's nucleus is called its atomic number and is equal to the number of electrons in the neutral (non-ionized) atom. Each atomic numbe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Secular Equilibrium
In nuclear physics, secular equilibrium is a situation in which the quantity of a radioactive isotope remains constant because its production rate (e.g., due to decay of a parent isotope) is equal to its decay rate. In radioactive decay Secular equilibrium can occur in a radioactive decay chain only if the half-life of the daughter radionuclide B is much shorter than the half-life of the parent radionuclide A. In such a case, the decay rate of A and hence the production rate of B is approximately constant, because the half-life of A is very long compared to the time scales considered. The quantity of radionuclide B builds up until the number of B atoms decaying per unit time becomes equal to the number being produced per unit time. The quantity of radionuclide B then reaches a constant, ''equilibrium'' value. Assuming the initial concentration of radionuclide B is zero, full equilibrium usually takes several half-lives of radionuclide B to establish. The quantity of radionuclide B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nuclear Medicine
Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is "radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emitting from within the body rather than radiation that is generated by external sources like X-rays. In addition, nuclear medicine scans differ from radiology, as the emphasis is not on imaging anatomy, but on the function. For such reason, it is called a physiological imaging modality. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans are the two most common imaging modalities in nuclear medicine. Diagnostic medical imaging Diagnostic In nuclear medicine imaging, radiopharmaceuticals are taken internally, for example, through inhalation, intravenously or orally. Then, external detectors (gamma cameras) capture and form images from the radiation emitted by the radiopharmaceuticals. This process ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Branching Ratio
In particle physics and nuclear physics, the branching fraction (or branching ratio) for a decay is the fraction of particles which decay by an individual decay mode or with respect to the total number of particles which decay. It applies to either the radioactive decay of atoms or the decay of elementary particles. It is equal to the ratio of the partial decay constant to the overall decay constant. Sometimes a partial half-life is given, but this term is misleading; due to competing modes it is not true that half of the particles will decay through a particular decay mode after its partial half-life. The partial half-life is merely an alternate way to specify the partial decay constant , the two being related through: :t_ = \frac. For example, for spontaneous decays of 132 Cs, 98.1% are ε (electron capture) or β+ ( positron) decays, and 1.9% are β− (electron) decays. The partial decay constants can be calculated from the branching fraction and the half-life of 132Cs (6.4 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bateman Equation
In nuclear physics, the Bateman equation is a mathematical model describing abundances and activities in a decay chain as a function of time, based on the decay rates and initial abundances. The model was formulated by Ernest Rutherford in 1905 and the analytical solution was provided by Harry Bateman in 1910. If, at time ''t'', there are N_i(t) atoms of isotope i that decays into isotope i+1 at the rate \lambda_i, the amounts of isotopes in the ''k''-step decay chain evolves as: : \begin \frac & =-\lambda_1 N_1(t) \\ pt\frac & =-\lambda_i N_i(t) + \lambda_N_(t) \\ pt\frac & = \lambda_N_(t) \end (this can be adapted to handle decay branches). While this can be solved explicitly for ''i'' = 2, the formulas quickly become cumbersome for longer chains. The Bateman equation is a classical master equation where the transition rates are only allowed from one species (i) to the next (i+1) but never in the reverse sense (i+1 to i is forbidden). Bateman found a general explicit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Secular Equilibrium
In nuclear physics, secular equilibrium is a situation in which the quantity of a radioactive isotope remains constant because its production rate (e.g., due to decay of a parent isotope) is equal to its decay rate. In radioactive decay Secular equilibrium can occur in a radioactive decay chain only if the half-life of the daughter radionuclide B is much shorter than the half-life of the parent radionuclide A. In such a case, the decay rate of A and hence the production rate of B is approximately constant, because the half-life of A is very long compared to the time scales considered. The quantity of radionuclide B builds up until the number of B atoms decaying per unit time becomes equal to the number being produced per unit time. The quantity of radionuclide B then reaches a constant, ''equilibrium'' value. Assuming the initial concentration of radionuclide B is zero, full equilibrium usually takes several half-lives of radionuclide B to establish. The quantity of radionuclide B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
