Phosphorus-32
| General | |
|---|---|
| Symbol | 32P |
| Names | phosphorus-32 |
| Protons (Z) | 15 |
| Neutrons (N) | 17 |
| Nuclide data | |
| Natural abundance | trace |
| Half-life (t1/2) | 14.269 d |
| Isotope mass | 31.9739076 Da |
| Spin | 1+ |
| Excess energy | −24304.88 keV |
| Decay products | 32S |
| Decay modes | |
| Decay mode | Decay energy (MeV) |
| Beta emission | 1.711 |
| Isotopes of phosphorus Complete table of nuclides | |
Phosphorus-32 (32P) is a radioactive isotope of phosphorus, containing one more neutron than the common and stable isotope of phosphorus, phosphorus-31.
Phosphorus is found in many organic molecules, and so, phosphorus-32 has many applications in medicine, biochemistry, and molecular biology where it can be used to trace phosphorylated molecules (for example, in elucidating metabolic pathways) and radioactively label DNA and RNA.