Nuclide Symbols

• Nuclide symbol


  Representation of an atom consisting of one or two letters that abbreviate the element, the atomic number, the mass number, and the charge if the atom is an ion
• Atom


  • Has a tiny nucleus with positively charged protons and neutrons with no charge, as well as negatively charged electrons that are some distance away from the nucleus
• Atomic number


  The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom, which determines the element
• Mass number


  The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom
• Electrons are so much less massive than protons and neutrons that they are ignored when looking at mass
• Isotopes


  Atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons and therefore different mass numbers
• Ion


  A particle with an electrical charge, either positive or negative, due to a difference between the number of protons and electrons
• The average atomic masses on the periodic table reflect the relative abundance of each isotope of an element
• Any individual atom will have a mass number that is a whole number