Branching decay

{
  "id": "MLC-T-CHM-001481",
  "term": "Branching decay",
  "field": "Chemistry",
  "definition": "A mode of radioactive decay in which a radionuclide can transform along two or more alternative routes, each with a characteristic probability called the branching fraction. Potassium-40 is an example: about 89 percent of its decays are beta-minus emission to calcium-40, and about 11 percent are electron capture to argon-40. The branching fractions of a nuclide sum to one.",
  "subject": "Analytical Chemistry",
  "see_also": [
    "nuclear decay"
  ],
  "references": [
    "PAC, 1982, 54, 1533. 'Glossary of terms used in nuclear analytical chemistry (Provisional)' on page 1536 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac198254081533)"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/chemistry/branching-decay/"
}