Isotopically pure diamond Isotopically pure diamond An isotopical pure diamond is a type of diamond that is composed entirely of one isotope of carbon. Isotopically pure diamonds have been manufactured from either the more common carbon isotope with mass number 12 (abbreviated as C) or the less common C isotope. Compared to natural diamonds that are composed of a mixture of C and C isotopes, isotopically pure diamonds possess improved characteristics such as increased thermal conductivity. Thermal conductivity of diamonds is at a minimum when C and C are in a ratio of 1:1 and reaches a maximum when the composition is 100%
Chemical element neutrons) for a particular isotope of an element, with this number combined with the pertinent element's symbol. IUPAC prefers that isotope symbols be written in superscript notation when practical, for example C and U. However, other notations, such as carbon-12 and uranium-235, or C-12 and U-235, are also used. As a special case, the three naturally occurring isotopes of the element hydrogen are often specified as H for H (protium), D for H (deuterium), and T for H (tritium). This convention is easier to use in chemical equations, replacing the need to write out the mass number for each atom.