If the fraction of the atoms of a radioactive material left after 120years is 164 1 64 , what is the half-life of the material? 164

If the fraction of the atoms of a radioactive material left after 120years is $\frac{1}{64}$, what is the half-life of the material?  $\frac{1}{64}$

Answer Details

The half-life of a radioactive material is the time it takes for half of the atoms in a sample to decay. The fraction of atoms left after a certain number of half-lives can be calculated using the formula: fraction left = (1/2)^(number of half-lives) Let's use this formula to solve the problem. We know that the fraction of atoms left after 120 years is 1/64, which means that: (1/2)^(number of half-lives) = 1/64 To solve for the number of half-lives, we can take the logarithm of both sides: log[(1/2)^(number of half-lives)] = log(1/64) Using the rule that log(a^b) = b*log(a), we can simplify the left side of the equation: number of half-lives * log(1/2) = log(1/64) Dividing both sides by log(1/2), we get: number of half-lives = log(1/64) / log(1/2) Using a calculator or the change of base formula, we can evaluate this expression: number of half-lives = 6 Therefore, the half-life of the material is 120/6 = 20 years.