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When an unstable isotope breaks down but doesn't change to another element the atomic number always?
Wiki User
∙ 6y ago
The atomic number is unchanged.
Wiki User
∙ 6y ago
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When a unstable isotope decays the daughter isotope that result is always a stable isotope true or false?
false
Is the decay of unstable isotopes always the same process?
Yes, for the specified isotope; but the process is statistic.
When a radioisotope decays does it always produce another isotope of the same element?
No!If the radioisotope loses a neutron, then it will produce another isotope of the same element. However, if it loses an alpha particle or a positron, the result is a different element.
When an unstable isotope decays the daughter isotope that results is always a stable isotope true or false?
Technically the answer is false, however the answer most tests accept as the correct answer is True.According to Nuclear theory when a parent undergoes decay and produces a daughter isotope the daughter may be stable or it may be unstable and further decay until a final stable granddaughter isotope is formed. This process is called a decay chain, however since eventually a stable isotope is formed the acceptable answer is True, even though technically it is not the case.
When does Uranium-235 become unstable?
Uranium 235 is unstable because it is a radioactive isotope. This means that it is constantly decaying and emitting radiation. The reason it is unstable is because it has too many neutrons in its nucleus. The neutron is a unstable particle, and when there are too many of them in one place, they can cause problems. When uranium 235 decays, it emits alpha particles, which are high-energy particles that can damage DNA and cause cancer.
When a unstable isotope decays the daughter isotope that result is always a stable isotope true or false?
false
Is the decay of unstable isotopes always the same process?
Yes, for the specified isotope; but the process is statistic.
How do you find the atomic number of an isotope?
The atomic number of an isotope is always identical to every other isotope, otherwise, it would form a separate element.
When a radioisotope decays does it always produce another isotope of the same element?
No!If the radioisotope loses a neutron, then it will produce another isotope of the same element. However, if it loses an alpha particle or a positron, the result is a different element.
How do you find the isotopes of an atom?
The atomic number of an isotope is always identical to every other isotope, otherwise, it would form a separate element.
What percentage of an atom's mass is the nucleus?
The precise figure varies from element to element and isotope to isotope depending on the number of neutrons in the nucleus, however it is always at least 99.95% which is the ratio between an electron and a proton.
When an unstable isotope decays the daughter isotope that results is always a stable isotope true or false?
Technically the answer is false, however the answer most tests accept as the correct answer is True.According to Nuclear theory when a parent undergoes decay and produces a daughter isotope the daughter may be stable or it may be unstable and further decay until a final stable granddaughter isotope is formed. This process is called a decay chain, however since eventually a stable isotope is formed the acceptable answer is True, even though technically it is not the case.
When does Uranium-235 become unstable?
Uranium 235 is unstable because it is a radioactive isotope. This means that it is constantly decaying and emitting radiation. The reason it is unstable is because it has too many neutrons in its nucleus. The neutron is a unstable particle, and when there are too many of them in one place, they can cause problems. When uranium 235 decays, it emits alpha particles, which are high-energy particles that can damage DNA and cause cancer.
When an atom undergoes radioactive decay when does it become a completely different element?
An atom of a given isotope will undergo radioactive decay whenever it feels like it. No joke. The nucleus of a radioactive isotope is unstable. Always. But that atom has no predictable moment of instability leading immediately to the decay event. We use something called a half life to estimate how long it will take for half a given quantity of an isotope to undergo radioactive decay until half the original amount is left, but this is a statistically calculated period. No one knows how long it will take a given atom of a radioactive isotope to decay, except that those with very short half lives will pretty much disappear relatively quickly.
Can you have a different number of neutrons and still have the same element?
yes you can have a different number of neutrons and have an isotope of the same element.number of protons for a element always stays the same.
What do you call a heavier version of an atom of the same element?
You call it an isotope. And it isn't always heavier; it can be lighter, too. An isotope is an atom of a certain element with a different number of neutrons. It usually has a lot of the same physical and chemical properties of the parent element, but it will have a different atomic mass because of the different neutron count. Many isotopes are radioactive, and therefore unstable, since they undergo decay over a certain period of time. Isotopes make possible radiocarbon dating and smoke detectors, so they're quite useful.
All nuclear reactions due to nuclear transmutation?
Nuclear reactions may or may not involve nuclear transmutation. We need to split hairs here to arrive at the correct answer, and the answer involves the definition of the word transmutation. We sometimes think of transmutation as the changing of one element to another. Fission and fusion reactions do this, and many kinds of radioactive decay also convert one element into another. But there are some kinds of nuclear reactions that do not change an atom from one element to another, but instead change it from one isotope of a given element into another isotope of that element. There are a number of examples of this, and one is where isotopes of a given element absorb a neutron and become another isotope of that element. A given nucleus incorporates the neutron into its nuclear arrangement and the next heavier isotope of that element is created. If a "strict" definition of transmutation is used where it means a nuclear reaction that changes one element into another, then no, this does not always happen as illustrated above with the example of neutron absorption. If a more general interpretation of the term is used where we say that the nucleus transmutes meaning changes configuration, then yes, nuclear reactions involve nuclear transmutation.
