How to Write 氚 (chuān) — Meaning “tritium”

Imagine the three strokes in 川 represent the three subatomic particles (one proton and two neutrons) in the nucleus of a tritium atom. So 氚 is the 'gas of three' — tritium has three nucleons, and 川 looks like three vertical lines.

Write the left radical 气 first with 4 strokes: horizontal, left-falling, horizontal, then a horizontal hook. Then add 川 on the right with 3 strokes: left-falling, vertical, vertical. A common mistake is making the 川 too wide or confusing its strokes with radicals like 氵(water). Keep 川 narrow and straight.

氚 (tritium) has the component 川 (chuān), while 氕 (protium, the ordinary hydrogen-1 isotope) has a single left-falling stroke 丿, and 氖 (neon, a noble gas) uses 乃 (nǎi) on the right. Visually, 氚 has three vertical-looking strokes in 川, 氕 has just a slash, and 氖 has a curved hook shape.

氚 is a scientific term for tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, used mainly in nuclear energy, environmental monitoring, and self-luminous devices like exit signs. It is not a common daily character; you will see it in physics textbooks, safety labels, or reports about tritium leaks.

Common words containing 氚 include: 氚气 (chuān qì) — tritium gas; 氚水 (chuān shuǐ) — tritiated water; 氚核 (chuān hé) — triton.