What happens during radioactive decay?

Answer 1

The timing of radioactive decay is unpredictable.

The causes of radioactive decay are instability of a nucleus and chance events. Examples of these chance events are collisions by subatomic particles, vacuum fluctuations, and the like - unpredictable.

Answer 2

Under the lash of the weak nuclear force, helium nuclei are ejected from radioactive substances. This lowers the atomic number by four, so the decay of Uranium, Thorium, Cesium, etc. slowly devolves into lead.

Answer 3

Radioactive decay occurs so that nuclei can gain greater stability. Alpha or beta particles or gamma rays are emitted so that the resulting nuclei have greater binding energy per nucleon, which means greater stablility.

Answer 4

Whenever there are unstable atoms. Those decay at a constant rate - for example, for a particular isotope, half the atoms might decay after 5000 years - which can't be changed by temperature or other physical influence.

Answer 5

An unstable nucleus loses particles until it becomes stable - (apex chemistr 2023)

Answer 6

In the nucleus. Furthermore the question--"Why does it happen now instead of earlier or later?" is the foundation of quantum mechanics.

Answer 7

Radioactive decay is the process where the nucleus of an atom changes into another type of nucleus and produces a particle at the same time.

Answer 8

radioaction istopes tend to break down into stable isotopes of the same or other elements in a process.

Answer 9

One isotope converts into another isotope. In the process, it will typically emit an alpha particle, or a beta particle (electron or positron), or energy in the form of gamma radiation.

Answer 10

yes, it can