Physics › Section V · Nuclear physics and its applications › Topic V.1
Nuclear radioactivity and its detection
Some atoms give off energetic radiation all by themselves, with no fuel and no switch. Learning what that radiation is, how far it travels and how instruments catch it is the entry point to all of nuclear physics.
In this topic
- A discovery by accident
- Three kinds of radiation
- Ionising radiation
- Range: why alpha stops first
- Typical ranges and shielding
- Worked example: an alpha particle in a magnetic field
- Detectors: film, Geiger tubes and ionisation
- Scintillators and solid-state detectors
- Worked example: counting with a photomultiplier
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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