Question detail
An isotope of carbon has a mass number of 14 and an atomic number of 6. How many neutrons does this isotope contain? Use the fission chain reaction context to keep Mass number, atomic number and isotopes distinct from nearby atomic and nuclear radiation ideas.
Try the question, check the answer, then read the explanation to understand the curriculum point.
At a glance
Question
Type
exam_style
Style
Topic
Atoms and isotopes
Question
An isotope of carbon has a mass number of 14 and an atomic number of 6. How many neutrons does this isotope contain? Use the fission chain reaction context to keep Mass number, atomic number and isotopes distinct from nearby atomic and nuclear radiation ideas.
Answer
8 In this fission chain reaction context, the answer must stay anchored to Mass number, atomic number and isotopes and the learning objective: Calculate the number of neutrons using mass number minus atomic number..
Explanation
8 is correct because the worked solution uses neutrons = mass number - atomic number and substitutes the values from the question. This keeps activity, count rate, atomic number, mass number and neutron count distinct for Atomic structure. Use the fission chain reaction context to keep Mass number, atomic number and isotopes distinct from nearby atomic and nuclear radiation ideas. This avoids collapsing the idea into nearby concepts such as isotope notation, count rate, half-life, alpha, beta, gamma, contamination, irradiation, fission or fusion.
Common mistake
Common Mistake in Neutron Calculation
Students often forget to subtract the atomic number from the mass number when calculating the number of neutrons.
Remind students to use the formula: Number of Neutrons = Mass Number - Atomic Number, and to clearly identify each value before performing the subtraction.
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