Tertiary Radiation

A beta particle, sometimes called beta ray, denoted by the lower-case Greek letter beta (β), is a high-energy, high-speed electron or positron emitted in the radioactive decay of an atomic nucleus, such as a potassium-40 nucleus, in the process of beta decay. Two forms of beta decay, β⁻ and β⁺, respectively produce electrons and positrons. Beta particles are a type of ionizing radiation.

An unstable atomic nucleus with an excess of neutrons may undergo β⁻ decay, where a neutron is converted into a proton, an electron, and an electron antineutrino (the antiparticle of the neutrino):

This process is mediated by the weak interaction. The neutron turns into a proton through the emission of a virtual W⁻ boson. At the quark level, W⁻ emission turns a down quark into an up quark, turning a neutron (one up quark and two down quarks) into a proton (two up quarks and one down quark). The virtual W⁻ boson then decays into an electron and an antineutrino.

Beta decay commonly occurs among the neutron-rich fission byproducts produced in nuclear reactors. Free neutrons also decay via this process. Both of these processes contribute to the copious quantities of beta rays and electron antineutrinos produced by fission-reactor fuel rods.

Unstable atomic nuclei with an excess of protons may undergo β⁺ decay, also called positron decay, where a proton is converted into a neutron, a positron, and an electron neutrino:

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