Radiation: Encyclopedia - Radiation

Radiation

Radiation can refer to one of the following:

Specific types in physics:

• Alpha radiation, composed of the nuclei of helium-4 atoms.
• Beta radiation, consisting of energetic electrons or positrons.
• Gamma radiation, which are high-energy electromagnetic waves such as X rays.
• Delta radiation
• Epsilon radiation
• Cherenkov radiation, radiation by a particle moving through an insulating medium faster than the speed of light in that medium.
• Electromagnetic radiation, a stream of photons.
• Gravitational radiation, a predicted consequence of general relativity.
• Neutron radiation
• Synchrotron radiation, the emission of radiation by a charged particle undergoing acceleration.
• Thermal radiation, the process by which a hot object emits electromagnetic radiation.
• Solar radiation, radiation emitted by the sun.

General types in physics:

• Ionizing radiation, a stream of particles with sufficient energy to cause ionization.
• Non-ionizing radiation, electromagnetic radiation that does not carry enough energy to ionize living material.
• Particle radiation, any kind of radiation in which the individual elements behave like particles.
• Radiant energy, radiation emitted by a source into the surrounding environment.

• In evolutionary biology, adaptive radiation.

In fiction, radiation can also refer to:

• Theta radiation and Omicron radiation, which are found in Star Trek

See also

• Radioactive decay
• Radioactive contamination

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Radiation", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki