Eli5 : If nothing disappear, what happens to the atoms that disintegrate when their life is done (life span of an atom)

Question

Eli5 : If nothing disappear, what happens to the atoms that disintegrate when their life is done (life span of an atom)

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Answer 1

So atoms don’t really have a “life span”

Some unstable materials have a “halflife” which is a rate at which they break down, but they just turn into other smaller materials through radioactive decay

The closest I can think of to atoms disintegrating is when matter and antimatter collide and annihilate. This usually takes place on a level smaller than atoms. Atoms are made up of protons neutrons and electrons, and then when they collide with their antimatter counterparts, anti-proton antineutron and positron (respectively), each particle is destroyed and a burst of energy is released.