A certain unknown nuclide undergoes two successive beta minus decays and finally…
PHYSICS · Subjective · A Level · Physics · Particles and radiation · Particles and radiation
Problem
A certain unknown nuclide ZAX undergoes two successive beta minus decays and finally becomes the stable isotope zirconium-90 (4090Zr).
(i) Determine the atomic number Z and mass number A of the original nuclide ZAX.
(ii) Write the complete nuclear equation for the first beta minus decay, indicating every emitted particle.
(iii) Write the complete nuclear equation for the second beta minus decay, starting from the intermediate nuclide obtained in part (ii).
(iv) For each of the three nuclides involved (original, intermediate, and final), calculate the number of protons and neutrons present and present your results in a tabular form.