Image Credit

Description:

Geology project idea The decay curve of potassium used as an example to show how to use a decay curve to obtain the time if the fraction of parent isotope remaining in the sample is known. The red lines show how to obtain the half life time, or the time after which half of the parent isotopes have decayed. The green (yellow) lines will guide you to the time after which only 1/4th (1/8th) of the parent isotopes remain. The arrows indicate how to read the graph, starting from a fraction of parent isotope remaining via a horizontal line to a point on the curve and then vertically down to a time on the time axis.

Source:

Sabine De Brabandere, Science Buddies

License:

Science Buddies