Atoms and nuclear radiation: AQA GCSE Combined Science questions

Every AQA GCSE Combined Science exam question on 6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation, 2018–2025, with its mark scheme and examiner’s report.

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Q04.1
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
3 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q04.2
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
2 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q04.3
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
2 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q04.4
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
4 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q04.5
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
2 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q04.6
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.2
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.3
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.4
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.5
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.6
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.7
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.8
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q01.9
June 2025 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q02.1
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q05.1
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
4 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q05.2
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q05.3
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
4 marks6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q05.4
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Higher
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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Q03.2
June 2024 · Physics Paper 1 Foundation
1 mark6.4.2 Atoms and nuclear radiation
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All 97 questions on Atoms and nuclear radiation, as a list

June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.1 (3 marks): Describe each type of radiation. [3 marks] Alpha particle Beta particle Gamma ray
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.2 (2 marks): The radioactive isotope gold-198 (Au) decays to mercury (Hg) by emitting beta radiation. Complete the nuclear equation for the decay of gold-198. [2 marks]
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.3 (2 marks): Determine the half-life of gold-198. [2 marks] Half-life = days
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.4 (4 marks): Determine the percentage decrease in the activity at 5 days. Give your answer to 2 significant figures. [4 marks] Percentage decrease (2 significant figures) =
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.5 (2 marks): The sample containing gold-198 is implanted very near to the cancer cells. Give two reasons why. [2 marks] 1 2
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.6 (1 mark): After treatment, the sample containing gold-198 is not removed from the patient. Suggest why the sample is left in the patient and not removed. [1 mark]
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.2 (1 mark): The isotope lead-210 is radioactive. What is meant by ‘lead-210 is radioactive’? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Lead-210 forms many different compounds. Lead-210 ha
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.3 (1 mark): The isotope lead-210 emits beta radiation. What is beta radiation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Electromagnetic radiation emitted from nuclei High speed electrons
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.4 (1 mark): What was the initial activity of the lead-210 in the paint? Use Figure 1. [1 mark] Activity = kBq
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.5 (1 mark): Calculate the activity of the lead-210 in the paint after one half-life. [1 mark] Activity = kBq
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.6 (1 mark): What was the estimated age of the painting when the activity was 10 kBq? Use Figure 1. [1 mark] Age = years
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.7 (1 mark): A scientist removed the other radioactive substances before measuring the activity. The activity would be greater if the other radioactive substances were not r
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.8 (1 mark): Complete the sentence. Choose the answer from the box. [1 mark] alpha beta gamma The type of radiation with the greatest range in air is .
June 2025, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.9 (1 mark): Complete the sentence. Choose the answer from the box. [1 mark] alpha beta gamma The type of radiation that is the least penetrating is .
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.1 (1 mark): What does an alpha particle consist of? [1 mark]
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q05.1 (4 marks): The water was irradiated and contaminated by the radioactive isotopes in the walls of the revigator. Explain how irradiating and contaminating the water affecte
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q05.2 (1 mark): Vanadium-52 (V) decays by emitting beta particles. What is the correct nuclear equation for this process? [1 mark] Tick () one box.
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q05.3 (4 marks): Table 2 shows the half-lives of radon-222 and vanadium-52. Table 2 Isotope Half-life Radon-222 3.8 days Vanadium-52 3.7 minutes The scientist measured the radia
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q05.4 (1 mark): Scientists monitored the effects of drinking the water from a revigator. Their methods and results were checked by other scientists. What name is given to the p
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.2 (1 mark): Figure 4 shows how the activity of a sample of radium-228 changed over time. Figure 4 What is the approximate half-life of radium-228? [1 mark] Tick () one box
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.3 (1 mark): When the equipment was arranged as shown in Figure 5, it was not possible to detect alpha particles from the toothpaste. Suggest how the scientist adjusted the
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.4 (1 mark): The scientist adjusted the equipment and determined the activity of the toothpaste from each tube. Table 1 shows the results. Table 1 Tube Activity in Bq A 3150
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.5 (1 mark): What was the independent variable in the investigation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. The activity of the toothpaste The mass of toothpaste used The temperature of
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.6 (1 mark): What was the dependent variable in the investigation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. The activity of the toothpaste The mass of toothpaste used The temperature of t
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.7 (1 mark): When the toothpaste was new, it caused a risk to health because of the nuclear radiation emitted. What happened to the risk to health from the toothpaste after
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.8 (1 mark): Which property makes nuclear radiation hazardous? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Nuclear radiation is ionising. Nuclear radiation is penetrating. Nuclear radiation
June 2024, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q07.1 (1 mark): What does an alpha particle consist of? [1 mark]
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.1 (1 mark): The method, results and conclusions of the scientist will need to be checked by other scientists before the results of the investigation are published. What nam
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.2 (1 mark): There is an increased risk of cancer if the scientist is irradiated by nuclear radiation. What property of nuclear radiation causes the increased risk of cancer
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.3 (1 mark): The activity of a radioactive source is the rate at which the nuclei of the source decay. What is the unit for the activity of a radioactive source? [1 mark]
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.4 (2 marks): The scientist placed a radiation detector near the sample and measured the count-rate. Explain why the count-rate is less than the activity of the sample. [2 ma
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.5 (2 marks): The scientist recorded the count-rate from the sample with the radiation detector at different distances from the sample. Table 2 shows the results. Table 2 Dis
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.6 (3 marks): The scientist moved the detector closer to the sample and started a stopwatch. The scientist measured the count-rate from the sample at different times. Table 3
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.7 (1 mark): The scientist had a second sample of the radioactive material. The scientist made appropriate measurements, then calculated the half-life of each sample. Why wa
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.1 (1 mark): Which type of radiation can be represented by the symbol He 2 4 ? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Alpha Beta Gamma
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.3 (1 mark): A polonium-210 (Po) nucleus changes into a lead (Pb) nucleus by emitting a He 2 4 particle. This is shown by the following nuclear equation. Po 84 210 → Pb X 20
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.4 (1 mark): The sample of polonium-210 had an activity of 100 Bq. Complete the sentence. Choose the answer from the box. [1 mark] 25 50 100 200 After one half-life, the act
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.5 (2 marks): The count-rate is the number of counts detected each second. In 30 seconds the number of counts detected was 1500. Calculate the count-rate. [2 marks] Count-rat
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.6 (2 marks): What was the effect of the sheet of lead on the count-rate? Give a reason for your answer. [2 marks] Effect Reason
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.7 (1 mark): The lead was irradiated by the gamma radiation. What happened to the lead when it was irradiated by the gamma radiation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. The lead ato
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.8 (1 mark): Gamma radiation is emitted from the nucleus of an atom. Complete the sentence. Choose the answer from the box. [1 mark] electromagnetic waves high speed electro
June 2023, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q01.9 (1 mark): Figure 2 shows the scientist holding the radioactive source using tongs. Figure 2 Suggest one reason why using long tongs rather than short tongs was safer for
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.1 (2 marks): A source of beta radiation in a smoke detector would be more hazardous than a source of alpha radiation. Explain why. [2 marks]
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.2 (2 marks): Actinium (Ac) is one source of alpha radiation. An actinium (Ac) nucleus emits an alpha particle (α) and turns into a francium (Fr) nucleus. This can be represe
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.3 (4 marks): A teacher wanted to find out what nuclear radiation is emitted from a source. The teacher placed different barriers between the source and a detector. The teach
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.4 (3 marks): Figure 11 shows how the activity of four different radioactive isotopes, A, B, C and D, changes over time. Figure 11 Write the isotopes A, B, C and D in order o
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.1 (1 mark): An americium-241 nucleus (Am) emits an alpha particle and turns into a neptunium nucleus (Np). Which is the correct nuclear equation for this decay? Tick () on
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.2 (1 mark): What is the furthest distance that alpha radiation can travel in air? Tick () one box. [1 mark] A few millimetres A few centimetres A few metres
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.3 (1 mark): The teacher placed a piece of paper between the americium-241 and the radiation detector. The reading on the count rate meter decreased by a large amount. Why d
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.4 (1 mark): Which symbol represents a beta particle? [1 mark] Tick () one box. e –1 0 e 0 0 e –1 –1 e 0 –1
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.5 (1 mark): The count rate from the source was 119 ± 7 counts per second. Calculate the smallest count rate this could have been. [1 mark] Smallest count rate = counts per
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.6 (3 marks): Draw one line from each type of variable to the description. [3 marks] Type of variable Description Control variable Dependent variable Independent variable Cou
June 2022, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q03.7 (2 marks): Figure 5 shows how the count rate from the different radioactive source changed with the distance from the source. Figure 5 Describe the relationship between th
November 2021, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.3 (1 mark): A spark detector is a device that can be used to detect alpha radiation. A spark detector works by alpha particles ionising atoms in the air near a wire mesh. A
November 2021, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.4 (6 marks): A teacher wants to demonstrate that the radioactive source emits alpha, beta and gamma radiation. Figure 3 shows the equipment the teacher has. Figure 3 Describ
November 2021, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.3 (1 mark): A spark detector is a device that can be used to detect alpha radiation. A spark detector works by alpha particles ionising atoms in the air near a wire mesh. A
November 2021, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.4 (6 marks): A teacher wants to demonstrate that the radioactive source emits alpha, beta and gamma radiation. Figure 11 shows the equipment the teacher has. Figure 11 Descr
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.1 (1 mark): What is the value of A in the equation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. A = 206 A = 208 A = 210 A = 211
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.2 (1 mark): What is the value of Z in the equation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Z = 80 Z = 82 Z = 85 Z = 86
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.3 (2 marks): A strontium-89 nucleus (Sr) emits a beta particle (β) and turns into an yttrium nucleus (Y). This can be represented by the equation: What are the values of A a
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.4 (1 mark): Gamma radiation is another type of nuclear radiation. What does gamma radiation consist of? [1 mark] Tick () one box. High energy neutrons Electromagnetic wave
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q02.5 (6 marks): Explain the differences between the properties of alpha, beta and gamma radiations. [6 marks]
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.1 (1 mark): Why is rolling dice a suitable model for radioactive decay? [1 mark]
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.2 (3 marks): The student rolled 144 dice and removed all those that landed on the number six. The student rolled the remaining dice and again removed all those that landed o
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.3 (2 marks): The number of times the dice have to be rolled to halve the original number of dice in the tray represents the half-life. Figure 7 shows an eight-sided dice and
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.4 (1 mark): A teacher has two radioactive sources, A and B. Source A has a longer half-life than source B. What can be deduced about the nuclei in source A compared with th
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.1 (1 mark): Complete the sentence. Choose the answer from the box. [1 mark] contamination irradiation ionisation decay Radioactive dust from the nuclear weapons testing set
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.2 (2 marks): The sample was collected from the desert in 1992. Determine the activity of the tritium in the sample in 2007. [2 marks] Activity = Bq
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.3 (1 mark): How much time did it take for the activity of the tritium in the sample to decrease from 80 Bq to 40 Bq? [1 mark] Time = years
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.4 (1 mark): What is the half-life of tritium? [1 mark] Half-life = years
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.5 (2 marks): The sample started with 45 billion atoms of tritium. After 4 years the sample had 36 billion atoms of tritium. Calculate the percentage of the tritium in the sa
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.6 (1 mark): A scientist determined the activity of a sample of tritium every minute for 3 minutes. Table 1 shows the results. Table 1 Time in minutes Activity in Bq 0 149 1
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.7 (1 mark): What safety precaution should scientists take when working with radioactive materials in a laboratory? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Tie long hair back before hand
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q02.8 (1 mark): Studies show that children born near the area of the desert containing tritium were more likely to develop cancer. It is important that the results from these s
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.1 (1 mark): What is the value of A in the equation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. A = 206 A = 208 A = 210 A = 211
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.2 (1 mark): What is the value of Z in the equation? [1 mark] Tick () one box. Z = 80 Z = 82 Z = 85 Z = 86
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.3 (2 marks): A strontium-89 nucleus (Sr) emits a beta particle (β) and turns into an yttrium nucleus (Y). This can be represented by the equation: What are the values of A a
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.4 (1 mark): Gamma radiation is another type of nuclear radiation. What does gamma radiation consist of? [1 mark] Tick () one box. High energy neutrons Electromagnetic wave
November 2020, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q06.5 (6 marks): Explain the differences between the properties of alpha, beta and gamma radiations. [6 marks]
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.1 (1 mark): A nucleus of lanthanum-140 emits gamma radiation. What happens to the mass number and the charge of the nucleus when gamma radiation is emitted? [1 mark] Tick (
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.2 (1 mark): Why is it difficult to detect gamma radiation? [1 mark]
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.3 (2 marks): Activity is the rate at which a radioactive source decays. A teacher measured the count-rate from a sample of lanthanum-140 using a Geiger-Muller (G-M) tube. Ex
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.4 (2 marks): Explain why the teacher stood as far away from the apparatus as possible. [2 marks] Table 1 shows the results. Table 1 Thickness of lead in cm Count rate in cou
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.5 (3 marks): The teacher concluded that the count rate was not inversely proportional to the thickness of lead. Explain why the teacher was correct. Use the data in Table 1.
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.6 (2 marks): Lanthanum-140 can also emit beta radiation and change into cerium. Complete the equation showing the decay of lanthanum (La) 140 into cerium (Ce). [2 marks]
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.7 (4 marks): Determine the ratio of the number of cerium atoms in the sample when it was 100 seconds old compared with when the sample was 350 seconds old. Use data from Fig
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q06.8 (3 marks): Determine the activity of the sample of cerium when the sample was 20 seconds old. Use Figure 7. [3 marks] Activity = Bq
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.2 (2 marks): Complete the graph in Figure 6. Use data from Table 2. Draw the line of best fit. [2 marks]
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.3 (1 mark): How much time did it take for the count rate to change from 200 counts per second to 100 counts per second? [1 mark] Time taken = s
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.4 (1 mark): What is the half-life of protactinium? [1 mark] Half-life = s
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.5 (1 mark): The nuclear radiation from the protactinium can pass through paper. This radiation can only be detected up to 1 metre away from the protactinium. What type of r
June 2019, Physics Paper 1 Foundation, Q04.6 (1 mark): The teacher read an article about the effects of radiation on the human body. Why are articles in scientific journals generally more trustworthy than articles i
June 2018, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.1 (1 mark): What is an alpha particle? [1 mark] Tick one box. 2 charged particles and 2 neutral particles. 2 charged particles and 4 neutral particles. 4 charged particles
June 2018, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.2 (1 mark): Which statement about beta radiation is true? [1 mark] Tick one box. It is the fastest moving type of radiation. It is the type of radiation with a negative cha
June 2018, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.3 (1 mark): Which statement about gamma radiation is true? [1 mark] Tick one box. It is a low frequency electromagnetic wave. It causes the charge of the nucleus to change.
June 2018, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.4 (4 marks): A soil sample was taken from the area around Chernobyl in 1986 The soil sample was contaminated with equal amounts of caesium–137 and iodine–131 Explain how the
June 2018, Physics Paper 1 Higher, Q04.5 (3 marks): Determine the year when the activity of the caesium–137 in the soil sample will be 1/32 of its original value. [3 marks] Year =

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