Final answer:
Radioactivity involves Rutherford's gold foil experiment, nuclear fusion and fission, alpha and beta decay, and half-life calculations.
Step-by-step explanation:
Rutherford's Experiment
In Rutherford's experiment, he conducted the gold foil experiment, where he bombarded thin gold foil with alpha particles. He observed that most of the alpha particles passed through the gold foil, but a small fraction of them were deflected at large angles or even bounced back. From these observations, Rutherford concluded that the majority of an atom's volume is empty space, with a dense, positively charged nucleus at the center.
Nuclear Fusion vs Nuclear Fission
Nuclear fusion occurs when two light atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus, while nuclear fission occurs when a heavy atomic nucleus splits into two lighter nuclei. In nuclear fusion, a tremendous amount of energy is released, such as in the fusion reactions happening in the Sun, where hydrogen nuclei combine to form helium. On the other hand, nuclear fission releases energy when heavy atomic nuclei, like uranium or plutonium, undergo splitting.
Alpha and Beta Decay
Alpha decay involves the emission of an alpha particle, which consists of two protons and two neutrons, from a radioactive nucleus. Beta decay can occur in two forms: beta-minus decay and beta-plus decay. Beta-minus decay involves the emission of an electron, while beta-plus decay involves the emission of a positron, which is an antimatter particle with the same mass as an electron but opposite charge.
Half-life
Half-life is the time it takes for half of the atoms in a radioactive sample to undergo decay. It is a characteristic property of a specific radioactive isotope. The formula to calculate the remaining amount of a radioactive substance after a certain number of half-lives is given by: N = N0 * (1/2)n, where N is the remaining amount of the substance, N0 is the initial amount, and n is the number of half-lives that have passed.