decay chain
decay chain noun: a series of nuclides, such that one nuclide radioactively decays into another, which decays into another, and so on, until a stable nuclide is reached. For example, uranium-238 must undergo eight alpha decays and six beta decays in order to become stable lead-206; intermediate nuclides include uranium-234, radium-226, and radon-222.
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Noun
decay chain (plural decay chains)
- A series of nuclides, such that one nuclide radioactively decays into another, which decays into another, and so on, until a stable nuclide is reached. For example, uranium-238 must undergo eight alpha decays and six beta decays in order to become stable lead-206; intermediate nuclides include uranium-234, radium-226, and radon-222.
- Synonyms:
- decay series
Synonyms of decay chain
Forms of decay chain
| plural | decay chains |
|---|
Questions about decay chain
- What does decay chain mean?
- Decay chain means a series of nuclides, such that one nuclide radioactively decays into another, which decays into another, and so on, until a stable nuclide is reached. For example, uranium-238 must undergo eight alpha decays and six beta decays in order to become stable lead-206; intermediate nuclides include uranium-234, radium-226, and radon-222.
- What part of speech is decay chain?
- Decay chain is a noun.
- What is the plural of decay chain?
- The plural of decay chain is decay chains.
Words near decay chain in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: decay chain (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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