Radioactivity & Decay Calculations: Half-Life, Activity & Dosimetry Basics
The decay law and λ from the half-life, activity in becquerel and curie, the remaining fraction after n half-lives, radiocarbon ages, parent–daughter ingrowth, the inverse-square law and half-value layers, simple dose estimates and Tc-99m ordering, with half-lives from the IAEA nuclide chart in a live spreadsheet that checks every cell. Educational only, not radiation-safety or medical guidance.
The first lesson is free — no account needed.
About this course
A radioactivity and decay calculations course with half-lives from the IAEA nuclide chart, for physics and chemistry students, lab technicians and anyone studying nuclear medicine basics. You turn the half-life of iodine-131 into a decay constant and tabulate N = N0·e^(−λt), convert the mass of sealed sources into activity in becquerel and microcurie, tabulate a cobalt-60 source over ten half-lives and find its replacement date with a base-2 log, calculate radiocarbon ages with the physical and the Libby half-life, model Sr-90 → Y-90 ingrowth towards secular equilibrium, apply the inverse-square law and half-value layers of lead, estimate weekly and annual doses against background and order Tc-99m for a clinic despite the decay. Educational only, not radiation-safety or medical guidance. The first lab is free.
Lessons
- The Decay Law N = N0·e^(−λt) and λ from the Half-LifeFree
- Activity A = λN: Becquerel, Curie and Specific Activity Pro
- Remaining Fraction after n Half-Lives, Replacement Time & a Decay Chart Pro
- Radiocarbon Dating: Age from the Remaining Fraction of C-14 Pro
- Decay Chains: Parent → Daughter Ingrowth in a Step Table (Sr-90 → Y-90) Pro
- Distance & Shielding: The Inverse-Square Law and Half-Value Layers Pro
- Dose Estimates: Dose Rate × Time, Weekly Totals and an Annual Comparison Pro
- Medical Isotope Logistics: Ordering Tc-99m and F-18 Despite the Decay Pro