The decay energy is the energy released by a nuclear decay.

The energy difference of the reactants is often written as Q:

where Q = (rest mass)_after *c² - (rest mass)_before * c² or Q = (kinetic energy)_After - (kinetic energy)_before.

Decay energy is usually quoted in terms of the energy units MeV (million electronvolts) or KeV (thousand electronvolts).

Types of radioactive decay include

• gamma ray
• beta decay (decay energy is divided between the emitted electron and the neutrino which is emitted at the same time)
• alpha decay

References

Radioactivity Radionuclides Radiation by Joseph Magill and Jean Galy, Springer Verlag, 2005

External links

• University of Waterloo science

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