Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 3 - 2019 - Paper 1
Question 3
Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon.
Nuclei of carbon-13 and carbon-14 can be represented by these symbols
\[^{13}_{6}C \text{ and } ^{14}_{6}C\]
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Worked Solution & Example Answer:Carbon-13 and carbon-14 are isotopes of carbon - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 3 - 2019 - Paper 1
Step 1
Complete the table for carbon-13
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Answer
For carbon-13, the atomic number is 6 and the mass number is 13. Therefore, the number of neutrons is calculated as follows:
Number of neutrons=Mass number−Atomic number=13−6=7.
Thus, the number of electrons in a neutral atom is equal to the number of protons, which is also 6.
number of neutrons in the nucleus
number of electrons in orbit around the nucleus
carbon-13
6
Step 2
Complete the table for carbon-14
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Answer
For carbon-14, the atomic number is, again, 6 and the mass number is 14. Therefore, the number of neutrons is calculated as follows:
Number of neutrons=Mass number−Atomic number=14−6=8.
Thus, the number of electrons is also 6, as it is a neutral atom.
number of neutrons in the nucleus
number of electrons in orbit around the nucleus
carbon-14
6
Step 3
State the name of an instrument that can be used to measure radioactivity.
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Answer
A common instrument used to measure radioactivity is a Geiger-Müller (GM) counter.
Step 4
State two sources of background radiation.
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