A certain radioactive nucleus X undergoes two successive -decays followed immediately…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · A Level · Physics · Particles and radiation · Particles and radiation
Problem
A certain radioactive nucleus X undergoes two successive α-decays followed immediately by one β−-decay to form a stable nuclide 83210Bi.
(i) Starting from the given final product, work backward to determine the mass number and atomic number of the original nucleus X.
(ii) For the nucleus X obtained in part (i), calculate the number of neutrons present.
(iii) The stable bismuth product exists as a singly ionised cation 83210Bi+. Determine the total number of electrons in this ion.
(iv) Compute the neutron–proton ratio for both nucleus X and the final bismuth nucleus. Using these values, comment on how the sequence of decays brings the nuclide closer to the region of stability.