Half-Life Calculator
Compute radioactive decay and half-life with precision.
Please enter the required details and click Calculate.
How to Use Half-Life Calculator?
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Enter the initial amount and half-life of the object.
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Enter elapsed time and proper unit(s).
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Click "Calculate" to view the remaining amount and decay details.
Input an initial amount of a substance, the time elapsed, and the half-life period into the half-life calculator. Make sure to select the appropriate units for the quantity and time (e.g., grams, years, days) before you "Calculate." Click "Calculate" and the calculator will quickly tell you how much of the substance remains, and/or how many half-lives have expired. The calculator returns rapid results including the decay constant and the percentage of the substance that remains there. An example of subsequent half-lives with a beginning amount of 100 grams, half-life of 8 days, and elapsed time of 16 days would yield a result of 25 grams remaining because 100 grams had decayed 1/2 to 50 grams (first half=8 days) and then into 25 grams (second half=8 days decay). The half-life calculator provides the user convenience in their calculations.
How Are Half-Life Calculations Performed?
Half-life calculations are based on the generic formula for exponential decay of the remaining amount of a substance, which the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has verified to be A = A₀ * (1/2)^(t/T), where A is the amount remaining, A₀ is the starting amount, t is amount of elapsed time, and T is the half-life. You can alternatively calculate the decay constant (λ) using the equation λ = ln(2)/T. These equations can be used to model radioactive decay and work well for many isotope types.
Practical Applications
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Monitoring radioactive decay for nuclear application or medical applications.
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Estimating remaining concentration of drug for pharmacokinetics studies.
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Determining the age of fossils using carbon-14 dating, which requires knowledge of half-life.
FAQ
What is a half-life calculator?
A half-life calculator is an online tool that calculates the amount of time it takes an object or substance to reduce to half of its original amount due to radioactive decay. You enter the initial amount of your object, the half-life of the object and the calculator will calculate the remaining amounts based on the half-life you provided.
How to calculate half-life of an isotope?
To find out the half-life of an isotope, you need to enter the initial amount, final amount and elapsed time into the half-life calculator. This will enable the calculator to use its exponential decay formula to calculate the half-life era.
What is the half-life formula?
The half-life formula is an equation to determine decay rates for radioactive substances: A=A0(1/2)t/T, where A is the amount remaining, A0 is the initial amount, t is elapsed time and T is half-life. It is used to simulate exponential decay in chemistry and physics.
How to find half-life from decay rate?
The decay constant (λ) is related to the half-life (T) by T = ln(2)/λ. You can simply plug the constant into a calculator and compute the half-life, while ensuring that you are using accurate units in order to get a good result.
What is radioactive decay?
Radioactive decay describes the process that occurs when unstable isotopes expel energy as radiation and diminish or decay in their quantity over a period of time. A half-life calculator is a way to estimate this decay using various substances.
How to use a half-life calculator for drugs?
For calculating halflife related to drug administration, all you need to do is enter your initial dose, the elapsed time, and the half-life period into the calculator, and it will estimate the concentration of the drug remaining in order to assist you when using dose planning software such as CalcMate.
What is the half-life calculation formula?
The half-life calculation formula is T = ln(2)/λ or A = A₀ * (1/2)^(t/T) where λ is decay constant, A₀ is the initial amount, A is the final amount, t is time, and T is the half-live period. This formula is supported and used by the IAEA as the most accurate way to calculate decay for isotopes such as carbon-14 or iodine-131.