What happens to the atomic number of the daughter nucleus if it is formed after the emission of the beta particle?
The atomic number remains the same.
The atomic number increases by two.
The atomic number increases by one.
The atomic number decreases by two.
I choose D
If you chose option D, which states that the atomic number decreases by two, I'm sorry but that is not correct.
The correct answer is option A, which states that the atomic number remains the same.
When a nucleus undergoes beta decay, a beta particle is emitted, which is either an electron (β-) or a positron (β+). In the process, a neutron is converted into a proton or vice versa. Since the atomic number correlates to the number of protons in the nucleus, the emission of a beta particle does not change the number of protons. Therefore, the atomic number of the daughter nucleus remains the same as the parent nucleus.