Name: Date:

Student Exploration: Isotopes

Directions: Follow the instructions to go through the simulation. Respond to the questions and
prompts in the orange boxes.

Vocabulary: atomic number, band of stability, half-life, isotope, isotope notation, mass number, radioactive,
radioisotope
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

1. What particles make up an atom? Protons, neutrons, and electrons make up an atom.

2. Which of these are found in the nucleus? Protons are found in the nucleus.

3. Which particles are charged? Protons and electrons are charged

Gizmo Warm-up
You may think that all atoms of an element are the same, but that is not the
case. Atoms of an element can come in several different versions. Some of
these versions are stable, while others can break down. In the Isotopes
Gizmo, you will explore different versions of the elements.

To begin, check that Hydrogen-1 is selected. Check that Show isotope

notation is selected.

1. Click the up and down arrows for protons and neutrons and notice what
changes.

A. Which particle determines the element? The protons determine

the element an atom is.

B. Which particle creates a different version of the same element? Neutrons create a different
version of the same element.

Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons are called isotopes.

2. Set protons and neutrons to 6.

A. Which isotope was created? Carbon-12

B. What percentage of the element consists of this isotope? This isotope makes
98.93% of the
element.
 C. Add a neutron. Which isotope do you have now? Carbon-13

D. What percentage of the element consists of this isotope? This isotope makes
up 1.07% of the
element.

Activity A: Get the Gizmo ready:

● Set protons to 2 and neutrons to 2.
Isotope notation ● Check that Show isotope notation is selected.

Question: How are isotopes written down?

1. Explore: Below the helium atom you see the isotope notation for helium-4. Add and subtract protons and
neutrons a few times using the arrow buttons. Notice how the isotope notation changes when you do this.

A. What does the top number equal? The top number equals to 4

B. Which particle determines the atomic number? Protons determine the

atomic number

In isotope notation there are two numbers to the left of the element symbol. The top
number is the mass number (A). The mass number is the sum of the protons and
neutrons. The bottom number is the atomic number (Z). The atomic number is the
number of protons.

2. ✏️Apply: Turn off Show isotope notation. Set protons to 3 and neutrons to 4.Write this isotope using
isotope notation.
✏️Hand write in this space or click here to select EDIT to use the drawing tool.

7
Li
3
Check your answer in the Gizmo.

3. Observe: Set the protons to 8 and the neutrons to 9.

A. How is the isotope written at the top left of the gray box? The half-life is 109.77 min

B. What does the number next to the element name indicate? The number next to the element
name indicates the mass
number.

4. Practice: Turn off Show isotope notation. Use what you have learned to fill in the table. When you are
finished, check your answers in the Gizmo.

Protons Neutrons Mass number Isotope notation Symbol

17 18 35 Chlorine-35 Cl
 1 0 1 H
26 30 56 Iron-56 Fe

14 17 31 Si

95 148 243 Americium-243 Am

Activity B: Get the Gizmo ready:

● On the graph, make sure the x-axis and y-axis
Band of stability range from 0-20. If not, click the [o] zoom control.

Introduction: Some atoms are stable, while others are radioactive. In a radioactive atom, the nucleus has the
potential to break down, or decay, and change into a different element. For example, radon-222 is radioactive.
When it decays, its nucleus loses enough protons and neutrons to become polonium-218. Radioactive
isotopes are also called radioisotopes.

Question: How can we predict whether an isotope will be stable or radioactive?

1. Observe: Use the Gizmo to create a carbon-12 isotope.

A. Is this isotope stable or radioactive? The isotope is stable.

B. Add a neutron to create carbon-13. Is this isotope stable or radioactive? The isotope is stable

C. Add another neutron. Is this isotope stable or radioactive? The isotope is

radioactive

D. What is the half-life of this isotope? The half-life of this

isotope is 5730 years

The half-life of a radioisotope is the time it takes for 50% of the atoms in a sample to decay. The shorter
the half-life, the more unstable the nucleus.

2. Collect data: Set protons to 1 and neutrons to 0. Below the graph, click Save point. Notice on the graph
the stable isotopes are shown in blue and the radioactive isotopes in green.

Add protons and neutrons and use the Save point button to record data for the first seven elements. Try to
find all of the stable isotopes. (Note: You can drag the point direction to any location on the graph.)

A. Do the stable isotopes appear to fall on a line? Yes

B. How many stable isotopes have equal numbers of protons and neutrons? 4

C. Turn on Show neutron:proton ratio. Drag the blue line until it lines up with most of the blue points.
Approximately what n:p ratio do most stable isotopes have? 1:1

3. Explore: Investigate the different radioactive isotopes you have saved.

 A. Which radioisotope is most stable, and what is its half-life? The most stable radioisotope
is
Beryllium-10, its half-life is
1.39 x 10^6 years

B. In general, how does the half-life change as you move farther away from the stable isotopes?

The half-life decreases as you move further away from the stable isotopes

4. Investigate: Next to the graph, click the [–] button once to zoom out. The x- and y-axes should each range
from about 0 to 70. Click inside the graph until you have found three or four stable isotopes that have at
least 50 protons. Save these points.

A. Which stable isotopes did you find? I found Tin-115,

Xeon-124,
Tellurium-122,
Antimony-123.

B. Do these have approximately equal numbers of neutrons and protons? No

C. Turn on Show neutron:proton ratio. Adjust the line until it lines up with the stable isotopes.
Approximately what n:p ratio do these isotopes have? 1:3

5. Analyze: If necessary, continue to save points on the graph until the Show all button activates. When it
does, click Show all. Zoom out on the graph until you can see all of the elements. The green area
identifies all of the known radioactive isotopes. The blue area shows the stable isotopes. This area is
known as the band of stability.

A. How does the slope of the band of stability change as the number of protons increases?

The slope curves upwards due to the excess of neutrons needed in compensation for
the increase in protons

B. If necessary, turn on Show neutron:proton ratio. What is the n:p ratio for the heaviest stable
isotopes? 1:5

C. Zoom in on the graph and drag the graph until you can see the top end of the band of stability.
What
is the heaviest stable isotope? The heaviest stable isotope is
Lead-208.

Two main forces are at work in the nucleus of the atom. The strong nuclear force holds protons and
neutrons together. At the same time, the electromagnetic force pushes protons apart. As the size of the
 nucleus increases, the number of neutrons needed to hold the protons together increases faster than the
number of protons. Above a certain mass, all atomic nuclei are unstable.

6. Apply: Turn off Show all and Show neutron:proton ratio. Predict whether the following isotopes will be
stable. Give a reason for each answer. Check your answers in the Gizmo.

A. This isotope is radioactive because the neutrons and protons are not equal.

B. This isotope is stable because the neutrons and protons are equal.

C. This isotope is stable because there is stability in protons and neutrons.

D. This isotope is radioactive because there is instability in protons and

neutrons.