The correct answer is: C. Need not be same
Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons. They have the same number of protons, which determines the element’s atomic number, but different numbers of neutrons, which determines the element’s mass number.
The chemical properties of an atom are determined by the number of electrons in its valence shell. The number of neutrons does not affect the number of electrons in the valence shell, so the chemical properties of isotopes of the same element are the same.
However, isotopes can have different physical properties, such as different masses and different nuclear decay rates. These differences can be used to separate isotopes from each other, and they can also be used to study the structure of the atom.
For example, carbon-12 and carbon-14 are two isotopes of carbon. Carbon-12 has 6 protons and 6 neutrons, while carbon-14 has 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Carbon-12 is the most common isotope of carbon, while carbon-14 is much less common. Carbon-14 is used in radioactive dating to determine the age of organic materials.
The
following are the explanations of each option:- Option A: Must be same. This is incorrect because isotopes of the same element can have different numbers of neutrons, which can affect their physical properties.
- Option B: Must be different. This is incorrect because isotopes of the same element have the same number of protons, which determines the element’s chemical properties.
- Option C: Need not be same. This is the correct answer because isotopes of the same element can have different numbers of neutrons, which can affect their physical properties but not their chemical properties.
- Option D: Need not be different. This is incorrect because isotopes of the same element have the same number of protons, which determines the element’s chemical properties.