C
Reactive nonmetal
Carbon
Z 6A 12mass 12.011
Slow-motion stage
Carbon-14
proton
neutron
electron (β⁻)
Parent nucleus · 14 nucleons
6 protons (coral) and 8 neutrons (blue) are packed together and held by the strong force.
A real decay takes about 10⁻²¹ s. At ⅓× this stage stretches it across eleven seconds.
Choose a reaction
Reaction
146C147N+β⁻+ ν̄
A neutron turns into a proton. An electron and an antineutrino fly out.
Z
67
+1
A
1414
no change
n⁰
87
-1
Energy released
0.156MeV
Electron (max)0.156 MeV
Mass convertedE = Δm c²0.00017 u
In joules2.50 × 10-14 J
Compared with a bonda C–C bond is 3.6 eV≈ 43,333 ×
Half-life of Carbon-14
5,730 years
The clock used to date organic material up to about 50,000 years old.
The particle
- Charge
- −1
- Mass
- 1/1836 u
- Speed
- Up to 99.9% of the speed of light
- Ionising power
- Moderate
- Stopped by
- A few millimetres of aluminium