Question

The radioactive atom `""_84^210 "Po"` decays by alpha emission. How would you write an equation showing the decay?

Answer 1

`""_84^210"Po"rarr""_82^206"Pb"+alpha` or `""_84^210"Po"rarr""_82^206"Pb"+""_2^4"He"`

Explanation:

Alpha emission is when a radioactive sample decays by emitting a helium nucleus. The sample thus decays into an atom with whose mass is four `"g"` `"mol"^(-1)` less and whose atomic number is two less.