Isotope-ratio mass spectrometry isotopic make up of the sample is obtained. For example, carbon isotope ratios are measured relative to the international standard for C. The C standard is produced from a fossil belemnite found in the Peedee Formation, which is a limestone formed in the Cretaceous period in South Carolina, U.S.A. The fossil is referred to as VPDB (Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite) and has C:C ratio of 0.0112372. Oxygen isotope ratios are measured relative the standard, V-SMOW (Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water). It is critical that the sample be processed before entering the mass spectrometer so that only a single chemical species
Isotopes of dubnium observed exit channel. Isotopes of dubnium Dubnium (Db) is a synthetic element, thus a standard atomic weight cannot be given. Like all synthetic elements, it has no stable isotopes. The first isotope to be synthesized was Db in 1968. The 13 known radioisotopes are from Db to Db, and 1–3 isomers. The longest-lived known isotope is Db with a half-life of 29 hours. "This section deals with the synthesis of nuclei of dubnium by so-called "cold" fusion reactions. These are processes which create compound nuclei at low excitation energy (~10–20 MeV, hence "cold"), leading to a higher probability of survival