Question

How are conversion electrons formed? List all the differences between an internal conversion process and beta decay?

Answer 1

Internal conversion electrons arise when an intense electric dipole field inside the nucleus accelerates an electron that has penetrated the nucleus and removes it from the atom. It is released from the atomic shell by transferring the energy of a gamma quantum emitted from the same nucleus to this electron. The kinetic energy of the conversion electron is equal to the energy of the gamma quantum reduced by the binding energy of the electron. Internal conversion is a transition of energy within a molecule or atom from a high energy state to a lower energy state without an accompanying photon. Beta Decay is a radioactive nuclear transformation governed by the weak force in which a nucleon (as a neutron) changes into a nucleon (as a proton) of the other type with the emission of either an electron and an antineutrino or a positron and a neutrino In an internal conversion process, atomic number of element doesn't change unlikely in beta decay. No neutrino is emitted in internal conversion while it is formed in beta decay.