# A student is investigating the penetrating power of three types of nuclear radiation: alpha, beta and gamma. The student passes each type of radiation through different materials and records whether the radiation is stopped. Describe how the penetrating power of alpha, beta and gamma radiation differs, and explain these differences in terms of the nature of each type of radiation.

> Eduqas GCSE Physics — 2.4 The atom, the nucleus and radioactivity · Describe and Explain · 4 marks

## Mark scheme (4 marks)

1. Alpha radiation has the least penetrating power / is stopped by a few centimetres of air or a thin sheet of paper
2. Beta radiation has intermediate penetrating power / is stopped by a few millimetres of aluminium
3. Gamma radiation has the greatest penetrating power / requires several centimetres of lead or thick concrete to reduce its intensity significantly
4. The difference in penetrating power is related to the nature of each radiation: alpha particles are large / consist of 2 protons and 2 neutrons so they interact strongly with matter / ionise heavily and lose energy quickly; beta particles are fast-moving electrons / smaller and interact less strongly; gamma is electromagnetic radiation / has no mass or charge so it interacts very weakly with matter

## Key terms

- [gamma radiation](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/gamma-radiation)
- [penetrating power](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/penetrating-power)

## Related

- [Revision notes for Eduqas GCSE Physics](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Describe and Explain" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
- [Practice this with AI marking (free)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/start)

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Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/a-student-is-investigating-the-penetrating-d03e76a3) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.