A copper wire is made of copper (Cu) atoms. Which of the following best describes the copper atoms?

Question

A.
They would be mostly the same, but some would have more protons than others.
B.
They each have different numbers of protons, neutrons, and electrons.
C.
They are all exactly the same.
D.
They are all basically the same, but the number of neutrons could vary.

Answer 1

The best description of the copper atoms in a copper wire is:

D. They are all basically the same, but the number of neutrons could vary.

This is because while all copper atoms have the same number of protons (29), they can exist as different isotopes, which have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. Therefore, the atoms are essentially the same in terms of chemical properties, but there may be slight variations in their mass due to differing neutron counts.