Szénizotópos

Szénizotópos refers to isotopes of carbon. Carbon is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. Naturally occurring carbon is composed of three isotopes: carbon-12 (¹²C), carbon-13 (¹³C), and carbon-14 (¹⁴C).

Carbon-12 is the most abundant isotope, making up about 98.9% of all carbon on Earth. It has 6 protons and 6 neutrons in its nucleus. Carbon-13 is the second most abundant, accounting for approximately 1.1% of natural carbon. It also has 6 protons but 7 neutrons. Both ¹²C and ¹³C are stable isotopes, meaning they do not undergo radioactive decay.

Carbon-14 (¹⁴C) is a radioactive isotope present in trace amounts. It has 6 protons and 8 neutrons. ¹⁴C is continuously produced in the Earth's upper atmosphere by cosmic rays interacting with nitrogen atoms. It decays with a half-life of about 5,730 years, emitting beta particles. This radioactive decay property makes ¹⁴C extremely useful for radiocarbon dating, a method used to determine the age of organic materials up to tens of thousands of years old. The ratio of ¹⁴C to ¹²C in an organism's remains decreases predictably after death, allowing scientists to calculate when the organism lived.