Properties of Radiation (Edexcel GCSE Physics)

Comparing Alpha, Beta & Gamma

• The properties of Alpha, Beta-plus, Beta-minus and Gamma are given in this table, and then described in more detail below

Different Properties of Nuclear Radiation

• The trend down the table shows:

• The range increases

  • Penetrating power increases

  • Ionisation decreases

Penetrating Power

• Alpha, beta and gamma have different properties

• They penetrate materials in different ways

  • This means they are stopped by different materials

Alpha, beta and gamma are different in how they penetrate materials. Alpha is the least penetrating, and gamma is the most penetrating

• Alpha is stopped by paper, whereas beta and gamma pass through it

• Beta is stopped by a few millimetres of aluminium

  • Gamma can pass through aluminium

• Gamma can be reduced by several metres of concrete or several centimetres of lead

• The more ionising a form of radiation is, the sooner it will react with the air it is moving through

• Strongly ionising radiation has the shortest range in air

  • Alpha only travels a few centimetres in air

  • Beta has a range of a few tens of centimetres

  • Gamma is not absorbed by air and so has an infinite range, although it does become less intense with distance