The symbol ₁₆³²S represents a specific isotope of sulfur. Let's break down the information related to sulfur from this symbol.
Atomic Number of Sulfur
The atomic number is indicated by the lower left number in the symbol. For sulfur, this is 16. This means sulfur has 16 protons in its nucleus.
Mass Number of Sulfur
The mass number is shown as the upper left number. In this case, it is 32. The mass number represents the total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of the sulfur atom.
Electronic Configuration of Sulfur
The electronic configuration describes how electrons are arranged around the nucleus. For sulfur, the electronic configuration is:
This configuration shows that sulfur has two electrons in the first shell, eight in the second, and six in the third shell.