What do the quantities "atomic number" and "mass number" represent?

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Raquel Norton

Chemistry

30 October, 12:38

What do the quantities "atomic number" and "mass number" represent?

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Gideon Maxwell · Answer 1

The atomic number of a chemical element (aka its proton number) is the number of protons found in the nucleus of an atom of that element, and therefore identical to the number of the nucleus. The mass number tells us the number (the sum of nucleons) of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom.