Mass number number of protons in a nucleus, and thus uniquely identifies an element. Hence, the difference between the mass number and the atomic number gives the number of neutrons ("N") in a given nucleus: . The mass number is written either after the element name or as a superscript to the left of an element's symbol. For example, the most common isotope of carbon is carbon-12, or , which has 6 protons and 6 neutrons. The full isotope symbol would also have the atomic number ("Z") as a subscript to the left of the element symbol directly below the mass number:
Isotopes of curium Isotopes of curium Curium (Cm) is an artificial element with an atomic number of 96. Because it is an artificial element, a standard atomic weight cannot be given, and it has no stable isotopes. The first isotope synthesized was Cm in 1944, which has 146 neutrons. There are 21 known radioisotopes with atomic masses ranging from Cm to Cm. There are also four known nuclear isomers (Cm, Cm, Cm, and Cm). The longest-lived isotope is Cm, with a half-life of 15.6 million years – several orders of magnitude longer than the half-life of all known nuclei of elements beyond curium