Given that nitrogen has an atomic number of 7, how many protons, neutrons, and electrons are expected in the typical nitrogen atom?

Nitrogen is a chemical element with the symbol N and an atomic number of 7. This means that a typical nitrogen atom has:

  • Protons: The number of protons in an atom is equal to its atomic number. Therefore, nitrogen has 7 protons.
  • Electrons: In a neutral atom, the number of electrons equals the number of protons. Hence, a typical nitrogen atom also has 7 electrons.
  • Neutrons: To find the number of neutrons, we subtract the atomic number from the atomic mass. The atomic mass of nitrogen is approximately 14. Thus, the number of neutrons is 14 – 7 = 7 neutrons.

In summary, a typical nitrogen atom contains:

  • 7 protons
  • 7 electrons
  • 7 neutrons

This composition is characteristic of the most common isotope of nitrogen, known as nitrogen-14, which accounts for about 99.6% of nitrogen found in nature.

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