The loss of radioactive energy.
The continual loss of energy by radioactive substances. Disintegration of the nucleus by the emission of alpha, beta, or gamma rays eventually results in the complete loss of radioactivity. The time required for some materials to become stable may be minutes and, for others, thousands of years.
The gradual waning of potency from a radiation emitter.
In the realm of nuclear physics, there exists a fascinating phenomenon known as radioactive decay, wherein a nuclide undergoes an autonomous metamorphosis, resulting in the emergence of one or more distinct nuclides. This transformative process encompasses various mechanisms, including the emission of alpha particles, electrons, positrons, and gamma rays from the nucleus, as well as the nuclear capture or expulsion of orbital electrons, and even fission events. The pace at which this decay transpires is quantified by a fundamental parameter termed the half-life, which elucidates the duration required for half of the radioactive substance to undergo such transmutations.