

Calcium is the first (lightest) element to have six naturally occurring isotopes.Ĭalcium-40 is composed of 20 protons, 20 neutrons, and 20 electrons. Natural calcium is a mixture of five stable isotopes (40Ca, 42Ca, 43Ca, 44Ca, and 46Ca) and one isotope with a half-life so long that it can be considered stable for all practical purposes (48Ca, with a half-life of about 4.3 × 1019 years). Mass numbers of typical isotopes of Calcium are 40 42 43 44 46. Isotopes are nuclides that have the same atomic number and are therefore the same element, but differ in the number of neutrons. The difference between the neutron number and the atomic number is known as the neutron excess: D = N – Z = A – 2Z.įor stable elements, there is usually a variety of stable isotopes. Neutron number plus atomic number equals atomic mass number: N+Z=A. The total number of neutrons in the nucleus of an atom is called the neutron number of the atom and is given the symbol N.

The total electrical charge of the nucleus is therefore +Ze, where e (elementary charge) equals to 1,602 x 10 -19 coulombs. Total number of protons in the nucleus is called the atomic number of the atom and is given the symbol Z. Calcium is a chemical element with atomic number 20 which means there are 20 protons in its nucleus.
