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Radiation
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For other uses, see Radiation (disambiguation).
Look up radiation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Radiation in physics is a process of emission of energy or particles. Various forms of radiation may be distinguished, depending on the type of the emitted energy/matter, the type of the emission source, properties and purposes of the emission, etc.
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Radiation by type of emission
- Electromagnetic radiation, a stream of photons.
- Gamma radiation, which is high-energy electromagnetic waves.
- Gravitational radiation, a predicted consequence of general relativity.
- Particle radiation, radiation by means of particles that have a rest mass.
- Alpha radiation, composed of the nuclei of helium-4 atoms.
- Beta radiation, consisting of energetic electrons or positrons.
- Neutron radiation
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Radiation by source/cause of emission
- Particle:
- E/m:
- Cherenkov radiation, electromagnetic radiation by a particle moving through an insulating medium faster than the speed of light in that medium.
- Synchrotron radiation, radiation by a charged particle undergoing acceleration.
- Solar radiation, radiation emitted by the sun.
- Thermal radiation, emission of electromagnetic radiation by a hot object
- Hawking radiation, thermal radiation thought to be emitted by black holes due to quantum effects.
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Radiation by properties of emission
- Ionizing radiation, radiation with sufficient energy to cause ionization.
- Non-ionizing radiation, radiation that does not carry enough energy to ionize living material.
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Radiation in fiction
- Theta radiation and Omicron radiation in Star Trek
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See also
- Radioactive decay
- Radioactive contamination
- Radiant energy, radiation emitted by a source into the surrounding environment.