In beta minus decay, a neutron converts to a proton and emits which particle?

In beta minus decay, a neutron converts to a proton and emits which particle?

• A. Electron
• B. Neutrino
• C. Photon
• D. Proton

Answer: (A)

In beta minus decay, a neutron transforms into a proton via the weak interaction, turning a down quark into an up quark. This change increases the nuclear charge by one, so the decay emits a negatively charged lepton to balance things. The process produces an electron and an electron antineutrino, with the electron being the charged particle detected among the given options. The photon isn’t involved in this decay, and the proton remains the new baryon, not an emitted particle. So the emitted particle from the list is the electron.

In beta minus decay, a neutron transforms into a proton via the weak interaction, turning a down quark into an up quark. This change increases the nuclear charge by one, so the decay emits a negatively charged lepton to balance things. The process produces an electron and an electron antineutrino, with the electron being the charged particle detected among the given options. The photon isn’t involved in this decay, and the proton remains the new baryon, not an emitted particle. So the emitted particle from the list is the electron.