A sample containing sulfur (atomic mass 32 u), manganese (55 u), and an unknown element is placed in a mass spectrometer. The ions have the same charge and are accelerated through the same potential difference before entering the magnetic field. The sulfur and manganese lines are separated by 3.20 cm, and the unknown element makes a line between them that is 1.07 cm from the sulfur line.
(a) What is the mass of the unknown element?
(b) Identify the element.
The conversion between atomic mass units and kilograms is
1 u = 1.66 × 10−27 kg