Nuclear magnetic resonance of anti-parallel spin neutrons (of total spin zero for the neutron-spin pair), plus a proton of spin . Therefore, the tritium total nuclear spin value is again , just like for the simpler, abundant hydrogen isotope, H nucleus (the "proton"). The NMR absorption frequency for tritium is also similar to that of H. In many other cases of "non-radioactive" nuclei, the overall spin is also non-zero. For example, the nucleus has an overall spin value . A non-zero spin formula_2 is always associated with a non-zero magnetic dipole moment, formula_3, via the relation formula_4 where "γ" is the gyromagnetic ratio.
Radioactive tracer atomic nucleus of an isotope is unstable, compounds containing this isotope are radioactive. Tritium is an example of a radioactive isotope. The principle behind the use of radioactive tracers is that an atom in a chemical compound is replaced by another atom, of the same chemical element. The substituting atom, however, is a radioactive isotope. This process is often called radioactive labeling. The power of the technique is due to the fact that radioactive decay is much more energetic than chemical reactions. Therefore, the radioactive isotope can be present in low concentration and its presence detected by sensitive radiation detectors