what are isotopes??
Answers
Answer:
each of two or more forms of the same element that contain equal numbers of protons but different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei, and hence differ in relative atomic mass but not in chemical properties; in particular, a radioactive form of an element.
each of two or more forms of the same element that contain equal numbers of protons but different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei, and hence differ in relative atomic mass but not in chemical properties; in particular, a radioactive form of an element."some elements have only one stable isotope"
Step-by-step explanation:
are you there siso???
Answer:
Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons but the same number of protons and electrons. The difference in the number of neutrons between the various isotopes of an element means that the various isotopes have different masses. The superscript number to the left of the element abbreviation indicates the number of protons plus neutrons in the isotope. For example, among the hydrogen isotopes, deuterium (denoted as 2H or D) has one neutron and one proton. This is approximately twice the mass of protium (1H), whereas tritium (3H) has approximately three times the mass of protium.
The stable isotopes have nuclei that do not decay to other isotopes on geologic timescales, but may themselves be produced by the decay of radioactive isotopes. Radioactive (unstable) isotopes have nuclei that spontaneously decay over time to form other isotopes. For example, 14C, a radioisotope of carbon, is produced in the atmosphere by the interaction of cosmic-ray neutrons with stable 14N. With a half-life of ∼5,730 yr, 14C decays back to 14N by emission of a beta particle. The stable 14N produced by radioactive decay is called “radiogenic” nitrogen. This chapter focuses on stable, nonradiogenic isotopes. For a more thorough discussion of the fundamentals of isotope geochemistry, see Clark and Fritz (1997) and Kendall and McDonnell (1998).