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Polonium was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898 - Leaving Cert Physics - Question h - 2019

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Polonium was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898. Polonium-218 has a half-life of 3 minutes. Calculate the activity of a sample of polonium-218 that contain... show full transcript

Worked Solution & Example Answer:Polonium was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898 - Leaving Cert Physics - Question h - 2019

Step 1

Calculate the decay constant, λ

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Answer

The decay constant, λ, can be calculated using the formula:

extλ=ln⁡2T1/2 ext{λ} = \frac{\ln{2}}{T_{1/2}}

Given that the half-life, T1/2T_{1/2}, is 3 minutes, we have:

λ=ln⁡23extminutes≈0.00385extmin−1λ = \frac{\ln{2}}{3 ext{ minutes}} \approx 0.00385 ext{ min}^{-1}

Step 2

Calculate the activity, A

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Answer

The activity of the sample can be calculated using the formula:

A=λNA = λN

Substituting the values:

A=(0.00385extmin−1)(75000)≈289extBqA = (0.00385 ext{ min}^{-1})(75000) \approx 289 ext{ Bq}

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