Complete the following table for the three naturally occurring isotopes of silicon, the major component in computer chips: (4.4, 4.5)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the isotopic symbol for silicon isotopes, which is typically written as \( ^A_{14}\text{Si} \), where \( A \) is the mass number.
2. Determine the atomic number of silicon, which is 14, as it is the number of protons in the nucleus.
3. For each isotope, the mass number \( A \) is the sum of protons and neutrons. Use the isotopic symbol to find \( A \).
4. Calculate the number of neutrons for each isotope by subtracting the atomic number from the mass number: \( \text{Number of Neutrons} = A - 14 \).
5. Since silicon is neutral, the number of electrons equals the number of protons, which is 14.

Key Concepts

Isotopes

Isotopes are variants of a chemical element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. This results in different mass numbers for the isotopes. For example, silicon has three naturally occurring isotopes: Si-28, Si-29, and Si-30, each differing in neutron count while maintaining the same atomic number of 14.

Atomic Number

The atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus of an atom and defines the element. For silicon, the atomic number is 14, meaning all silicon isotopes have 14 protons. This number is crucial for identifying the element and determining its position in the periodic table.

Mass Number

The mass number is the total number of protons and neutrons in an atom's nucleus. It is used to distinguish between different isotopes of an element. For instance, the mass numbers of silicon isotopes are 28, 29, and 30, reflecting their varying neutron counts while keeping the proton count constant.