RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 1 of 9
RADIOACTIVE DECAY
Radioactive materials may either originate from natural sources or be created through technological
processes. Naturally radioactive materials include carbon-14, potassium-40, and thorium and uranium
isotopes and their progeny. Neutron transmutation of stable isotopes into radioisotopes is a method of
artificially creating radioactive material. Of interest to the study of soft errors in circuits are the heavy decay
chains of uranium and thorium. To begin our study of radioactivity, we first examine simple radioactive
decay and we define terms such as half-life, decay constant, and activity.
Basic Balance Equation
The basic balance equation is a useful starting point for many analyses:
Rate of Change = Production (Inflow) – Losses (Outflow)
Simple Decay Chain
For a simple radioactive decay chain, the parent radionuclide decays to a stable product. Let N(t) represent
the parent radionuclide at time t, where N could be in units of total atoms (n) or atom density (N). We
assume in this discussion that no production of the radionuclide occurs after t = 0, so there is an initial
number of atoms equal to N(0). These radioactive atoms then decay according the decay constant (λ),
which is a probability per unit time that an individual atom decays, and which can be expressed in terms of
the half-life (t½) of the substance, ½)2ln( t=λ . The decay rate is a nuclear property independent of (1)
temperature, (2) pressure, (3) chemical form of the isotope, and (4) physical state of the substance. Using
the basic balance equation above, a first-order differential equation describing N(t) is established
)(tN
dt
Nd λ−= (1)
Laplace transforming the differential equation yields:
)()0()( sNNsNs λ−=− (2)
The above expression is algebraically manipulated to isolate the variable of interest, N(s):
)(
)0()(
)0()()(
λ
λ
+=
=+
s
NsN
NsNs
(3)
Finally, the inverse Laplace transform is taken to determine the time dependent concentration of the parent
radionuclide for t ≥ 0:
( ) ½/21)0()0()( ttt NeNtN == −λ (4)
where the decay constant (λ) and half-life of the radionuclide (t½) are related by
λ
)2ln(
2
1 =t (5)
The average (or mean) life of a radionuclide is
λλτ
1)(
)0(
1
0
== ∫
∞
dttNt
N
(6)
The buildup of a stable decay (daughter) product, which is not initially present, would follow
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 2 of 9
( )teN λ−−1)0( (7)
Activity
The activity is the number of decays or disintegrations per unit time [Becquerels (Bq) or Curies (Ci)]
tentntA λλλ −=≡ )0()()( (8)
where a Becquerel is the SI unit defined as one transformation per second, and 1 Ci = 3.7×1010 Bq. Figure 1
shows the activity of a (parent) radionuclide where the time scale (ordinate) is expressed in term of the
number of half-lives of the radionuclide and the abscissa is measured in comparison to the initial activity
(A0). The y-axis could equivalently be stated in terms of N(t) or n(t) as measured in reference to N0 and n0,
respectively.
A
ct
iv
ity
, A
(t)
Figure 1. Activity of a radionuclide undergoing simple decay. The radionuclide activity is normalized to
the initial activity, A(0), and time is in terms of the number of half-lives.
Example:
Given 1 gram-mole of potassium (K) today, compute: (a) the activity today in Bq, and (b) the number of
K-40 atoms one billion years from now.
Solution:
A gram-mole of any element is 6.022×1023 atoms, and in this case equals the number of potassium (K)
atoms. Natural potassium is composed of two stable isotopes, K-39 and K-41, and a radioisotope, K-40,
which is only 0.0117 atom percent. Hence, today there are
atoms40-K107.046atoms)K10022.6)(000117.0( 1923atomsK
atoms40-K
40K ×=×=−n
The half-life of K-40 is 1.277×109 years, such that the decay constant is
sec
117
9
½
10721.1
sec3600
hr1
hr24
day1
day365
yr1
yr10277.1
)2ln()2ln( −×=⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
×== tλ
(a) The activity of the K-40 today is
Bq1213)atoms10046.7)(10721.1( 19sec
117
00 =××== −nA λ
(b) The number of K-40 atoms in 109 years may be found using Eq. (4):
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 3 of 9
( ) ( ) atoms10095.4)atoms10046.7()( 19yr10277.1/yr102119/210 99½ ×=×== ×ttntn
Specific Activity
The specific activity is the activity per unit mass (m) of the radionuclide [Bq/g or Ci/g]
M
N
M
Nm
mm
n
m
ASA AvAv
λλλ ===≡ (9)
where M is the atomic weight. This expression shows that the specific activity is independent of the actual
mass and is a fixed value (i.e., time independent) for a particular radionuclide.
Example:
Compute the specific activity of cobalt-60.
Solution:
The half-life of Co-60 is 5.27 years. The specific activity is computed using Eq. (9):
g
Bq1019.4
sec3600
hr1
hr24
day1
day365
yr1
mole)-g/g60(
)mole-atoms/g10022.6(
)yrs27.5(
)2ln( 1323
60-Co ×=⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛×=SA
Effective Half-life
The effective half-life takes into account both the radioactive decay and the biological removal of a
radioisotope. It is the combination of the radioactive half-life and the biological half-life (like resistors in a
parallel circuit).
biorad
biorad
eff
eff
bioradeff
tt
tt
t
½,½,
½,½,
½,
)2ln(
+==
+=
λ
λλλ
(10)
Example:
Iodine-131 has a radioactive half-life of 8 days and a biological half-life of 120 days as it tends to collect
in the thyroid. What is the effective half-life of I-131?
Solution:
days5.7
)days1208(
)days120)(days8(
½, =+=efft
Table I. Natural Heavy Decay Chains
Series Decay Chain Parent Parent Half-life (yrs) Stable End Product
(4n+0) Thorium Th23290 1.405 × 10
10 Pb20882
(4n+1) Neptunium Np23793 2.14 × 10
6 Bi20983
(4n+2) Uranium U23892 4.468 × 10
9 Pb20682
(4n+3) Actinium U23592 7.038 × 10
8 Pb20782
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 4 of 9
Heavy Decay Chains
The natural heavy decay chains consist of four series of radionuclides as summarized in Table I. The
(4n+b) expression describes the mass number of any member in the series. The numeral "4" occurs because
during an alpha transition there is a change in the nucleus of four mass units. The values of "b" (b=0,1,2,3)
indicate the number of neutron and/or proton departures from the thorium series (4n) where n is an integer.
Hence, in the thorium series the parent and each of the daughter products has a mass number perfectly
divisible by 4. Note that the series with a parent half-life of t½>1010 yrs have decayed very little while those
with a half-life of t½<108 yrs are gone. The series still present are detailed in Figure 3. These heavy decay
chains undergo compound (serial) and complex (branching) decay schemes, which are explored next.
Compound Decay (n1→ n2→ n3)
The earlier equation for simple decay can be extended to the case in which a radionuclide (n1) decays to a
daughter product (n2) that is also radioactive, and which subsequently decays to a stable end product (n3).
The differential equation and time domain solution for n1 are the same as the simple decay situation above.
tentnsnnsnstn
dt
nd
1)0()()()0()()( 11111111
1 λλλ −=⇒−=−⇒−= (11)
The differential equation for n2, however, includes the production of n2 from the decay of n1
)()( 2211
2 tntn
dt
nd λλ −= (12)
The solution to this differential equation may also be accomplished with Laplace transforms, and
substituting for n1(s) using an expression extracted from Eq. (11) above:
)()(
)0(
)(
)0(
)(
)()0(
)(
)()()0()(
21
11
2
2
2
112
2
221122
λλ
λ
λ
λ
λ
λλ
++++=
+
+=
−=−
ss
n
s
n
s
snn
sn
snsnnsns
(13)
Inverse Laplace transforming this expression yields
[ ]ttt eenentn 212
12
11
22
)0(
)0()( λλλ λλ
λ −−− −−+= (14)
The differential equation for the end product (granddaughter) n3 consists only of a production term since
there are no losses because the end product is stable.
)(22
3 tn
dt
nd λ= (15)
The solution may be found by integrating this expression and substituting Eq. (14)
( ) ⎟⎟⎠⎞⎜⎜⎝⎛ −−−++−+=
+=
−−−
∫
ttt
t
eenenn
dnntn
212
21
1
21
2
123
0 2233
1)0(1)0()0(
)()0()(
λλλ
λλ
λ
λλ
λ
ττλ
(16)
Alternatively, the solution may be determined using Laplace transforms
)()0()()( 223322
3 snnsnstn
dt
nd λλ =−⇒= (17)
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 5 of 9
Compound Radioactive Decay
There are three cases of interest for compound decay.
1. The non-equilibrium or general case (λ1>λ2) requires the use of the full equation (i.e., Eq. (14)) for
n2(t). For 0)0(2 =n , the full expression is reduced to
[ ]tt eentn 21
12
11
2
)0(
)( λλλλ
λ −− −−= (18)
The activities of the parent and daughter are graphed below where it can be seen that eventually the
total activity is dominated by the daughter’s activity, that is
1½,221 7
~for ttAAA >≅+ (19)
Non-Equilibrium Compound Decay
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time (no. of half-lives of parent, A1)
R
el
at
iv
e
A
ct
iv
ity
A1(t)+A2(t)
A2(t)
A1(t)
2. Secular equilibrium occurs when the parent is very long-lived compared to the daughter, λ1<<λ2.
After about seven half-lives of the daughter, the parent’s and daughter’s activities are equal as shown
in the equations and figure below for 0)0(2 =n
[ ]
2½,111222
2
11
2
7~for)0()0()()(
1
)0(
)( 2
ttAntntA
e
n
tn t
>==≡
−≈ −
λλ
λ
λ λ
(20)
Secular Equilibrium Compound Decay
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time (no. of half-lives of daughter, A2)
R
el
at
iv
e
A
ct
iv
ity A1(t)
A2(t)
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 6 of 9
3. Transient equilibrium occurs when the parent is long-lived (λ1<λ2) since eventually all the activities
decay with the half-life of the parent as illustrated in the equations and figure below for 0)0(2 =n
2½,
12
2
1222
1
12
1
12
11
2
7~for)()()(
)(
)0(
)( 1
tttAtntA
tne
n
tn t
>−=≡
−=−≈
−
λλ
λλ
λλ
λ
λλ
λ λ
(21)
Transient Equilibrium Compound Decay
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time (no. of half-lives of daughter, A2)
R
el
at
iv
e
A
ct
iv
ity
A1(t)+A2(t)
A2(t)
A1(t)
Bateman Equation (n1→ n2→ n3→ …→ ni→)
Bateman developed a general equation for serial decay chains*, such as the heavy decay chains of
Th-232, U-235, and U-238. Assuming that the concentrations of all the daughters are initially zero (i.e.,
0)0( =in for i>1), the concentration of the i-th radionuclide can be determined from
∑
∏=
≠=
−
−
−
=
i
j
i
jk
k
jk
t
ii
jentn
1
1
1121
)(
)0()(
λλ
λλλ
λ
L (22)
Example: Natural uranium is composed by atomic percent of 99.2745% U-238, 0.72% U-235, and 0.0055%
U-234. Confirm the relative fractions of U-238 and U-234, that is, verify
050,18)0055.0/()2745.99(/ 234U238U ==−− nn
Solution: We note that secular equilibrium is eventually established between U-238 and its great-
grandchild, U-234, such that their activities are equal:
234-U238-U
234-U238-U
)()( nn
AA
λλ =
=
From Figure 3, the half-lives of U-238 and U-234 are 4.468×109 yrs and 2.445×105 yrs, respectively.
Substituting these values into the above expression yields:
274,18
yrs10445.2
yrs10468.4
/)2ln(
/)2ln(
5
9
234-U½,
238-U½,
238-U½,
234-U½,
238-U
234-U
234-U
238-U =×
×====
t
t
t
t
n
n
λ
λ
Since the fraction of U-234 is only known to two significant figures, the relative fractions are confirmed.
* H. Bateman, “The solution of a system of differential equations occurring in the theory of radio-active
transformations,” Proc. Cambridge Phil. Soc., 15, p. 423 (1910).
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 7 of 9
Example: An impurity level of 5 ppm of Th-232 is present in the ceramic packaging material to be used as a
direct top covering (lid) for an integrated circuit (IC), as shown below. The ceramic has a density of 4.7
g/cm3 and an effective atomic weight of 43.5 amu. Determine the maximum alpha flux into the IC.
Solution:
The atomic density of the ceramic is
322
233
ceramic atoms/cm1051.6mole-g/g43.5
)mole-atoms/g10022.6)(g/cm7.4( ×=×==
M
N
N Av
ρ
The thorium concentration is
317226
ceramic
6
Th atoms/cm1025.3)1051.6)(105()105( ×=××=×= −− NN
The decay constant of Th-232 is
sec/10564.1
s3600
hr1
hr24
d1
d365
yr1
yr10405.1
)2ln()2ln( 18
10
½
232-Th
−×=⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛
×== tλ
The activity of the thorium is ( )( ) 3
cm
atoms17
sec
118
232-Th Bq/cm5088.01025.310564.1 3 =××== −NA λ
We must find the depth into the lid from which the alphas will have sufficient energy to escape the lid, that
is, we determine an active region of the lid in terms of an alpha range into the lid. We find that Th-232
emits alphas at two different energies: 4.016 MeV (77%) and 3.957 MeV (23%). The range of these ~ 4
MeV alphas in air is
cm34.262.2)MeV 4)(24.1(62.224.1 =−=−= αERair
The corresponding range in the ceramic lid is computed using the Bragg-Kleeman rule
( ) ( ) μm7.55cm000755.0cm34.2
7.4
5.43103.2103.2 44 ==⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛×=×= −− airRMR ρ
Assuming a one-dimensional geometry, only half the alphas at the most move toward the IC such that the
maximum alpha emission flux into the IC is
seccm
alphas00023.0
Bq
alpha/sec1)cm000755.0(
cm
Bq6115.0
2
1
232
1
⋅=⎟⎟⎠
⎞
⎜⎜⎝
⎛⎟⎠
⎞⎜⎝
⎛== dAαφ
Of course, a thinner lid than 7.55 µm would emit fewer alphas. The above analysis does not include any of
the alpha emissions from progeny of Th-232.
Complex Radioactive Decay
A radionuclide may also decay by multiple means, for example, by both α and β decay. As examples,
Figure 3 shows two such complex or branching decay schemes: (1) in the Th-232 series, Bi-212 decays to
either Po-212 or Tl-208, and (2) in the U-235 series, Ac-227 decays to Th-227 or Fr-223
Figure 2. Complex decay scheme in which radionuclide A decays to either B or C.
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 8 of 9
Suppose that radionuclide A decays proportionally to B and C according to fractions fB and fC, respectively,
as depicted in Figure 2. Since λA represents the decay probability for A, then the probability of decay from
A to B is ABf λλ =1 , and likewise to C is ACf λλ =2 . The overall decay probability λA is the sum of the
individual probabilities, that is, 21 λλλ +=A (i.e., a joint probability from the union of the two decay
paths). The balance equation for radionuclide A is therefore
)()()( 21 tntndt
nd
AAA
A λλλ +−=−= (23)
The activity of A can be shown to be
t
AA
t
A
t
AA
AAAA
eneAeAtA
tAtAtntntA
A )()(
2121
2121 )0()0()0()(
and
)()()()()()(
λλλλλ λ
λλλ
+−+−− ===
+=+==
(24)
If B and C are stable, then intuitively from Eq. (7):
( )( )tACCC
t
ABBB
A
A
enfntn
enfntn
λ
λ
−
−
−+=
−+=
1)0()0()(
1)0()0()(
(25)
Example: The decay of Bi-212 involves a complex decay scheme whose daughters both decay to the same
grandchild (stable Pb-208) as illustrated below. Determine whether the time to decay from Bi-212 to Pb-
208 differs based on the decay branch taken.
212Bi
212Po
208Tl
fβ=64%
, λβ
fα=36%, λα
208Pb
α
α
β
β
Solution: We begin by finding the decay constant of Bi-212
/min01145.0)min 55.60/()2ln(/)2ln( ½212-Bi === tλ
Next, determine the decay constants associated with the initial two (α and β) decay branches
/min00411.0) /min01145.0)(3593.0(
/min00734.0) /min01145.0)(6407.0(
212-Bi
212-Bi
===
===
λλ
λλ
αα
ββ
f
f
From Figure 3, the half-lives of Po-212 and Tl-208 are 305 ns and 3.07 min, respectively. Using Eq. (6),
the corresponding average lives ( )2ln(//1 ½t== λτ ) of the radionuclides are
Upper branch:
ns440)2ln(/)ns305()2ln(/
min2.136 /min)00734.0/(1/1
2/1212-Po
212,-Bi
===
===
tτ
λτ ββ
Lower branch:
min43.4)2ln(/min)07.3()2ln(/
min 3.243 /min)00411.0/(1/1
2/1208-Tl
212,-Bi
===
===
tτ
λτ αα
This implies that the average time in the upper (Bi-212→Po-212→Pb-208) branch is shorter than in the Bi-
212→Tl-208→Pb-208 path. Noteworthy is that both of these paths represent secular equilibrium behavior.
RadioactiveDecay © 2006, K.E. Holbert Page 9 of 9
35
.93
%
1.
38
%
Figure 3. Thorium-232, Uranium-235 and U-238 decay chains referenced to atomic (left) and neutron (top) numbers.
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