Cyberphysics - Radioactivity (Symbols)

Symbols

Each of the nuclear radiations has it own accepted symbol(s).


Alpha	(Greek letter 'a' - alpha)	(Greek letter 'a' - alpha)	(Chemical symbol for helium) 4 is the nucleon number or mass number (sum of protons and neutrons in the nucleus) 2 is the proton number or atomic number - the charge on the particle
Beta	(Greek letter 'b' - beta)	(Greek letter 'b' - beta)	('e' stands for electron) we have a -1 because its charge is -1 and a zero for mass because it's mass is negligible
Gamma	(Greek letter 'g' - gamma)
Positron	(Greek letter 'b' - beta)	(Greek letter 'b' - beta)	('e' stands for electron) we have a +1 because its charge is +1 and a zero for mass because it's mass is negligible

Most naturally occurring elements are mixtures of isotopes, which are represented by symbols of the form where X is the symbol of the element, A is the nucleon number and Z is the proton number