Hardest Chemistry Question?

Question

What are Isotopes?

Answer 1

click here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopes

Answer 2

I agree with the first poster

Answer 3

Isotopes are based on the fact that it is the number of protons that identify an element; the number of neutrons merely provides "ballast" for the dynamic sub-nuclear equilibrium involved in muon, pion, gluon, and quark interchanges.  An element is defined by its proton count; the isotope is defined by the neutron count for the same element in different atoms.

The atomic weight of an atom is the count of its protons and neutrons.  If you took the number of atoms of each isotope and did a weighted average of the isotope number, you would get the fractional atomic weights that appear on most periodic tables.

Not all isotopes are stable, leading to radioactivity by various mechanisms.