Question

If sulfur 34 undergoes alpha decay, what will it become?

Answer 1

If sulfur-34 undergoes α-decay, it becomes silicon-30.

An α-particle is a helium nucleus. It contains 2 protons and 2 neutrons, for a mass number of 4.

During α-decay, an atomic nucleus emits an alpha particle. It transforms (or decays) into an atom with an atomic number 2 less and a mass number 4 less.

Thus, sulfur-34 decays through α-particle emission to form silicon-30 according to the equation:

`""_16^34"S" → _14^30"Si" + _2^4"He"`

Silicon-30 is a stable nucleus, so it does not decay further.