© Science Geeks
ATOMIC STRUCTURE AND
RADIOACTIVITY
Ionising Radiation! The stuff of science fiction
nightmares! An invisible killer that detroys living
things! Murdered spies! Nuclear disasters!
Radioactive waste! Nuclear destruction. It is vital that
we understand this natural phenomena. This is the
page to do so….. But before we can understand what
ionising radiation is, we first need to understand the
structure of the atom…..
Describe what
is happening
in these two
diagrams?
The number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus.
Sometimes called the nucleon number
Made of protons and neutons.
Has a positive charge.
Most of the mass of the atom is concentrated here.
Has same number of protons
but a different number of neutrons
An atom that has become charged by
either losing or gaining electrons
The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom
Positively charged particle found in the nucleus.
Relative mass of 1 and charge +1