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Isomer


An isomer (/ˈsəmər/; from Greek ἰσομερής, isomerès; isos = "equal", méros = "part") is a molecule with the same molecular formula as another molecule, but with a different chemical structure. That is, isomers contain the same number of atoms of each element, but have different arrangements of their atoms. Isomers do not necessarily share similar properties, unless they also have the same functional groups. There are two main forms of isomerism (/ˈsəmərɪzm/ or /ˈsɒmərɪzm/): structural isomerism (or constitutional isomerism) and stereoisomerism (or spatial isomerism).

In structural isomers, sometimes referred to as constitutional isomers, the atoms and functional groups are joined together in different ways. Structural isomers have different IUPAC names and may or may not belong to the same functional group. This group includes chain isomerism whereby hydrocarbon chains have variable amounts of branching; position isomerism, which deals with the position of a functional group on a chain; and functional group isomerism, in which one functional group is split up into different ones.


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