UPSC CDS Science Chemistry Questions Part 1

In the gamma decay of a nucleus, neither the mass number nor the atomic number of the nucleus changes. Gamma decay is the emission of a photon from the nucleus of the atom and since the gamma rays are electromagnetic waves, they are pure energy, and have no mass or atomic number. This means that the atomic and mass numbers of the atom do not change, and instead, this mode of decay brings the atom down to a less excited state, as it has less energy