Editing Beta particle (section)

===Beta decay schemes===
[[File:Cs-137-decay.svg|thumb|Caesium-137 decay scheme, showing it initially undergoes beta decay. The 661&nbsp;keV gamma peak associated with <sup>137</sup>Cs is actually emitted by the daughter radionuclide.]]
The accompanying decay scheme diagram shows the beta decay of [[caesium-137]]. <sup>137</sup>Cs is noted for a characteristic gamma peak at 661&nbsp;keV, but this is actually emitted by the daughter radionuclide <sup>137m</sup>Ba. The diagram shows the type and energy of the emitted radiation, its relative abundance, and the daughter nuclides after decay.

[[Phosphorus-32]] is a beta emitter widely used in medicine. It has a short half-life of 14.29 days<ref name="LNHB">{{cite web |title=Phosphorus-32 |url=http://www.nucleide.org/DDEP_WG/Nuclides/P-32_tables.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.nucleide.org/DDEP_WG/Nuclides/P-32_tables.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |access-date=28 June 2022 |website=nucleide.org |publisher=Laboratoire Nationale Henri Bequerel}}</ref> and decays into sulfur-32 by [[beta decay]] as shown in this nuclear equation:
:{| border="0"
|- style="height:2em;"
|{{nuclide|Phosphorus|32}} ||→ ||{{nuclide|Sulfur|32|charge=1+}} ||+ ||{{SubatomicParticle|link=yes|Electron}} ||+ ||{{SubatomicParticle|link=yes|Electron Antineutrino}}
|}
1.709&nbsp;[[MeV]] of energy is released during the decay.<ref name="LNHB"/> The kinetic energy of the [[electron]] varies with an average of approximately 0.5&nbsp;MeV and the remainder of the energy is carried by the nearly undetectable [[electron antineutrino]]. In comparison to other beta radiation-emitting nuclides, the electron is moderately energetic. It is blocked by around 1&nbsp;m of air or 5&nbsp;mm of [[acrylic glass]].