Isotone

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Isotones are atomic species that share the same number of neutrons, and differ in the number of protons.

Examples of isotones include carbon-12, nitrogen-13 and oxygen-14. These atoms all have six neutrons and six, seven and eight protons respectively.

A mnemonic that can be used to differentiate isotones from isotopes and isobars is as follows:

  • Same Z (number of protons) = isotopes
  • Same A (number of nucleons) = isobars
  • Same N (number of neutrons) = isotones