Simulating Radioactive Decay with Dice

This demonstration uses dice to represent unstable nuclei. By rolling the dice repeatedly and removing those that show a 6, students can model the random process of radioactive decay and visualize how the number of undecayed nuclei decreases over time, illustrating the concept of half-life.

1. Begin with 100 dice, each representing a radioactive nucleus.
2. Roll all the dice at once.
3. Remove any dice that show a 6, as these represent nuclei that have decayed.
4. Record the number of dice that remain undecayed.
5. Repeat the rolling, removing, and recording process multiple times until few or no dice remain.
6. Plot the number of remaining dice after each roll to show the decay curve.

Simulating Radioactive Decay - QuantumBoffin:

Simulating Radioactive Decay With Dice - Physics Experiment - vt.physics:

📄 Decay with dice worksheet - Spice: https://www.uwa.edu.au/study/-/media/faculties/science/docs/activity-decay-with-dice.pdf

📄🕹️ Half-Life Simulation - Alyssa J. Pasquale, Ph.D.: https://doctor-pasquale.com/simulations/halfLife.html

• Start with more or fewer dice to compare results.
• Use different rules, such as removing dice on both 5s and 6s, to simulate isotopes with different decay probabilities.
• Conduct the experiment with groups and compare decay curves to see variability in results.

• No specific safety equipment required.
• Ensure dice are not thrown forcefully to avoid damage or injury.

• Why is the decay of each nucleus considered random? (Because quantum processes that determine decay cannot be predicted for an individual nucleus.)
• Why does the overall decay follow a predictable pattern despite randomness? (Large numbers of nuclei average out to produce a consistent exponential decay.)
• What does the number of dice removed each round represent in terms of radioactive decay? (It represents the number of nuclei that decayed in that time interval.)
• How does this model illustrate the concept of half-life? (The time it takes for about half of the dice to be removed corresponds to the half-life of the sample.)