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Particle decay. In particle physics, particle decay is the spontaneous process of one unstable subatomic particle transforming into multiple other particles. The particles created in this process (the final state) must each be less massive than the original, although the total mass of the system must be conserved.
Category. v. t. e. 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, beta, and gamma ...
A quantity is subject to exponential decay if it decreases at a rate proportional to its current value. Symbolically, this process can be expressed by the following differential equation , where N is the quantity and λ ( lambda ) is a positive rate called the exponential decay constant , disintegration constant , [1] rate constant , [2] or ...
Radiometric dating. Radiometric dating, radioactive dating or radioisotope dating is a technique which is used to date materials such as rocks or carbon, in which trace radioactive impurities were selectively incorporated when they were formed. The method compares the abundance of a naturally occurring radioactive isotope within the material to ...
Half-life (symbol t½) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable atoms survive. The term is also used more generally to characterize any type of exponential (or, rarely ...
37 GBq. SI base unit. 3.7 × 1010 s −1. Sample of cobalt-60 that emits 1 μCi (microcurie) of radioactivity; i.e. 37,000 decays per second. The curie (symbol Ci) is a non- SI unit of radioactivity originally defined in 1910. According to a notice in Nature at the time, it was to be named in honour of Pierre Curie, [1] but was considered at ...
Corpse decomposition. Decomposition is the process in which the organs and complex molecules of animal and human bodies break down into simple organic matter over time. In vertebrates, five stages of decomposition are typically recognized: fresh, bloat, active decay, advanced decay, and dry/skeletonized. [1]
In physics and engineering, the time constant, usually denoted by the Greek letter τ (tau), is the parameter characterizing the response to a step input of a first-order, linear time-invariant (LTI) system. [1] [note 1] The time constant is the main characteristic unit of a first-order LTI system. In the time domain, the usual choice to ...