Trace Sciences International

Helium Isotopes

Nominal Mass
Accurate Mass
% Natural Abundance
Chemical Form
Enrichment Available %

3

3.01602931 (4)
0.000137 (3)

N/A

N/A

4

4.00260324 (5)

99.999863 (3)

N/A

N/A

Helium has two isotopes but it consists almost entirely of He-4 with natural He only containing just over 0.0001% of He-3. Thousands of liters of He-3 are used annually in cryogenic applications and He-3 is also used as a neutron counter in nuclear application. He-3 is also applied in magnetic resonance imaging.