Can radioactive energies become electromagnetic I am trying to learn about radioactive energies and wonder if, because these also seem to come under the topic of radiation, can these energies become electromagnetic. I'm pretty much a beginner, so if you could keep the answer pretty simple, it would help.
 A: 'Radioactive decays' tend to be categorised into 'alpha', 'beta' and 'gamma' decays. Alpha particles are helium nuclei, beta particles are electrons and gamma particles are electromagnetic radiation.
To answer your question: It depends on the radioactive product, but gamma rays (which are produced in most radioactive decays) are electromagnetic waves.
A: I'm not quite sure what you mean by "radioactive energies", but in general there are three types of radiation:


*

*$\alpha$ radiation: these are helium nuclei: He$^{2+}$.

*$\beta$ radiation: these are nothing more than electrons: e$^-$.

*$\gamma$ radiation: these are nothing more than photons (often denoted by $\gamma$), and are in fact traveling packets of electromagnetic energy.


If I misunderstood, please add a comment to this answer or edit your question to make yourself more clear.
A: Radioactivity comes in three basic types. Gamma radiation is an electromagnetic wave just like light and radio waves but of higher energy, and is described using electrodynamics. Alpha and beta radiation is charged particles (helium nuclei and electrons respectively) and again the motion of charged particles is described using electrodynamics.
So electromagnetism can be used to describe the products of radioactivity, but it cannot be used to explain why nuclei are radiactive. To explain why some nuclei emit alpha particles or gamma rays requires an understanding of the strong nuclear force, while the emission of beta particles is controlled by the weak nuclear force. Both of these are quite different to the electromagnetic force.
