Why is beta decay a weak interaction?

Answer 1

In terms of "penetration," beta decay is more penetrating than alpha radiation, but less ionizing; in other words, it is safer than alpha decay. However, its penetrating effect is weak because it is stopped by a few millimeters of air.

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Answer 2

Luna Chen

Beta decay is considered a weak interaction because it involves the transformation of a neutron into a proton, or vice versa, accompanied by the emission of a beta particle (an electron or positron) and a neutrino or antineutrino. This process violates the conservation of lepton number and is mediated by the weak nuclear force, which is much weaker than the electromagnetic force or the strong nuclear force. Therefore, compared to other nuclear interactions, such as alpha decay or gamma decay, beta decay is relatively weak.

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Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.