gamma ray
(noun)
High-energy wave of electromagnetic energy.
(noun)
Electromagnetic radiation of high frequency and therefore high energy per photon.
Examples of gamma ray in the following topics:
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Electromagnetic Spectrum
- Frequencies observed in astronomy range from 2.4×1023 Hz (1 GeV gamma rays) down to the local plasma frequency of the ionized interstellar medium (~1 kHz).
- Generally, electromagnetic radiation is classified by wavelength into radio wave, microwave, terahertz (or sub-millimeter) radiation, infrared, the visible region we perceive as light, ultraviolet, X-rays, and gamma rays.
- Gamma rays: Energetic ejection of core electrons in heavy elements, Compton scattering (for all atomic numbers), excitation of atomic nuclei, including dissociation of nuclei.
- High-energy gamma rays: Creation of particle-antiparticle pairs.
- Dr Atkinson soon moved on to the un-needed gamma rays and improved them to delta rays!
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Modes of Radioactive Decay
- Alpha particles carry a positive charge, beta particles carry a negative charge, and gamma rays are neutral.
- Likewise, gamma radiation and X-rays were found to be similar high-energy electromagnetic radiation.
- Some decay reactions release energy in the form of electromagnetic waves called gamma rays.
- However, unlike visible light, humans cannot see gamma rays, because they have a much higher frequency and energy than visible light.
- Gamma rays can only be reduced by much more substantial mass, such as a very thick layer of lead.
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The Electromagnetic Spectrum
- This electromagnetic spectrum ranges from very short wavelengths (including gamma and x-rays) to very long wavelengths (including microwaves and broadcast radio waves).
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Isotopes
- The new atoms created may be in a high energy state and emit gamma rays which lowers the energy but alone does not change the atom into another isotope.
- Carbon-14 (14C) is a naturally-occurring radioisotope that is created from atmospheric 14N (nitrogen) by the addition of a neutron and the loss of a proton, which is caused by cosmic rays.
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Nuclear Binding Energy and Mass Defect
- When a large nucleus splits into pieces, excess energy is emitted as photons, or gamma rays, and as kinetic energy, as a number of different particles are ejected.
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Determining Atomic Structures by X-Ray Crystallography
- X-ray crystallography is a method of determining the arrangement of atoms within molecules.
- X-ray crystallography is a method for determining the arrangement of atoms within a crystal structure.
- The crystal is typically rotated with respect to different axes and shot again with X-rays, so that diffraction patterns from all angles of the X-rays hitting the crystal are recorded.
- When bombarded with x-ray radiation, crystals exhibit a characteristic diffraction pattern.
- An X-ray diffraction pattern of a crystallized protein molecule.
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Cathode Rays
- Electrons were first discovered as the constituents of cathode rays.
- These were the cathode rays.
- Eugene Goldstein named them cathode rays.
- It was used in discovery of cathode rays.
- Connect the two electrodes to a high voltage source and see them produce cathode rays.
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Discovery of Radioactivity
- This means that rays carry energy, but pitchblende emits them continuously without any energy input.
- It was soon evident that Becquerel's rays originated in the nuclei of the atoms.
- The emission of these rays is called nuclear radioactivity, or simply radioactivity.
- The rays are called nuclear radiation.
- In 1898, Marie Curie began her doctoral study of Becquerel's rays.
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Elemental Boron
- Boron is produced by cosmic ray spallation, is a metalloid, and is essential to life.
- Boron is produced entirely by cosmic ray spallation (as a result of nuclear reactions), and not by stellar nucleosynthesis (not within stars as a result of fusion or supernovae).
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Substitution of the Hydroxyl Hydrogen
- Five-membered (gamma) and six-membered (delta) lactones are most commonly formed.