Final answer:
Molybdenum-99 decays to technetium-99m through beta decay, then to technetium-99 by emitting a gamma ray. Technetium-99m is used in nuclear medicine for diagnostic imaging and has a half-life of roughly 6 hours, whereas molybdenum-99 has a half-life of 66 hours.
Step-by-step explanation:
Molybdenum-99 decays to technetium-99m (Tc-99m) through beta decay, which is the emission of beta particles from the nucleus. This decay process involves molybdenum-99 emitting a beta particle to form technetium-99m, a metastable nuclear isomer indicated by the 'm' in Tc-99m. Technetium-99m eventually decays to the ground state of technetium-99 (Tc-99) by emitting a gamma ray (y ray).
The step-by-step explanation for the decay process is as follows:
- Molybdenum-98 (Mo-98) absorbs a neutron and becomes molybdenum-99 (Mo-99).
- Mo-99 undergoes beta decay to form an excited form of technetium-99, denoted as Tc-99*.
- This excited nucleus relaxes to the ground state, Tc-99, by emitting a gamma ray.
- Finally, the ground state of Tc-99 also emits a beta particle, leading to stable technetium-99.
Tc-99m is widely used in nuclear medicine for diagnostic imaging due to its short half-life of approximately 6 hours, which is ideal for minimizing radiation exposure to the patient. In contrast, molybdenum-99 has a half-life of 66 hours, making it more stable for transport to medical facilities, where it is then used to generate Tc-99m on-site. These radioactive isotopes are vital components for medical imaging and treatment.
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