Question detail
Which of the following is a characteristic of a suitable medical tracer?
Try the question, check the answer, then read the explanation to understand the curriculum point.
At a glance
MCQ
Type
practice
Style
Topic
Hazards and uses of radioactive emissions and of background radiation
Question
- A. High ionizing power
- B. Short half-life
- C. Long half-life
- D. Low penetration ability
Answer
Short half-life
Explanation
A suitable medical tracer should have a short half-life to reduce the radiation dose to the patient while still being effective for imaging.
Common mistake
Misunderstanding Half-Lives
Students often confuse the concept of half-life with the total time a radioactive isotope is active, thinking it refers to the entire duration of radioactivity rather than the time taken for half of the radioactive atoms to decay.
To fix this, students should focus on understanding that half-life is a specific time period during which half of the radioactive material decays, and that isotopes can remain active for multiple half-lives.
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