This diagram covers Half-Life Decay Curve within Half-Life for GCSE Physics. Revise Half-Life in Atomic Structure for GCSE Physics with 15 exam-style questions and 23 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 3 of 13 in this topic. Focus on the labels, the relationships between parts, and the explanation that turns the diagram into an exam-ready answer.
Topic position
Section 3 of 13
Practice
15 questions
Recall
23 flashcards
📊 Half-Life Decay Curve
Figure 1: Exponential decay curve. At each half-life interval, the activity (or number of undecayed nuclei) halves. The curve never reaches zero.
KEY PATTERN: After each half-life, exactly HALF of the radioactive atoms remain. The curve never reaches zero — there's always some radioactive material left. To find half-life from a graph: find when the activity halves (e.g., 800 → 400 Bq) and read the time taken.
Keep building this topic
Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in Half-Life. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.
Practice Questions for Half-Life
What is the definition of half-life?
Explain what is meant by saying radioactive decay is 'random and spontaneous'.
Quick Recall Flashcards
15 questions on Half-Life — practise free
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