Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon - Edexcel - GCSE Physics Combined Science - Question 6 - 2019 - Paper 1
Question 6
Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon.
Nuclei of carbon-13 and carbon-14 can be represented by these symbols
$$^{13}_{6}C$$ and $$^{14}_{6}C$$
Complete th... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon - Edexcel - GCSE Physics Combined Science - Question 6 - 2019 - Paper 1
Step 1
Complete the table for an atom of carbon-13 and an atom of carbon-14
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Answer
Carbon-13 has 7 neutrons and 6 electrons in its nucleus, while carbon-14 has 8 neutrons and 6 electrons.
Step 2
State the name of an instrument that can be used to measure radioactivity
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Answer
Geiger counter.
Step 3
State two sources of background radiation
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Answer
Cosmic rays.
Radon gas.
Step 4
Determine the age of the piece of wood
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Answer
The age of the piece of wood can be determined using the decay formula. The reduction of carbon-14 from 1,000,000 to 125,000 represents a decay of 8 units (as calculated using the relationship of half-lives). Hence, the age is:
extAge=8imes5700=45600extyears.
Step 5
Explain what the information in Figure 5 and Figure 6 shows about the structure of an atom
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Answer
The large number of alpha particles detected at position P indicates that there is an empty space within the atom, as most particles passed through without deflection. In contrast, the very few particles detected at positions Q and R suggest that there must be a dense and positively charged nucleus at the center of the atom, which repels the positively charged alpha particles.
