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Lesson 2 Defining The Atom

The document defines key terms related to atomic structure such as atom, electron, nucleus, proton, and neutron. It summarizes experiments that determined the structure of the atom, including cathode ray experiments that showed atoms are divisible into smaller particles like electrons, Rutherford's gold foil experiment that revealed the dense positively charged nucleus at the atom's center, and discoveries of the proton and neutron as components of the nucleus.

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46 views

Lesson 2 Defining The Atom

The document defines key terms related to atomic structure such as atom, electron, nucleus, proton, and neutron. It summarizes experiments that determined the structure of the atom, including cathode ray experiments that showed atoms are divisible into smaller particles like electrons, Rutherford's gold foil experiment that revealed the dense positively charged nucleus at the atom's center, and discoveries of the proton and neutron as components of the nucleus.

Uploaded by

ggqwyp2jmp
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lesson 2

Defining the Atom


Focus Question

What does an atom look like?


New Vocabulary

atom
cathode ray
electron
nucleus
proton
neutron
Review Vocabulary

model: a visual, verbal, and/or mathematical


explanation of data collected from many
experiments
The Atom

• The smallest particle of an element that


retains the properties of the element is called
an atom.
• Imagine that you could increase the size of an
atom to make it as big as an orange. At this
scale, an orange would be as big as Earth.
• An instrument called the scanning tunneling
microscope (STM) allows individual atoms to
be seen.
The Electron

The Cathode-Ray Tube


• When an electric charge is applied, a ray of radiation,
called a cathode ray, travels from the cathode to the
anode. It is called a cathode ray.
• Cathode rays are a stream of particles carrying a
negative charge. The particles carrying a negative
charge are known as electrons.
Mass and Charge of the Electron

Charge-to-Mass Ratio
• Cathode-ray experiments were used to
determine the ratio of an electron’s charge to
its mass.
• Results showed that the mass of the charged
particle was much less than that of a
hydrogen atom, the lightest known atom.
• Results showed that Dalton had been
incorrect; atoms were divisible into smaller
subatomic particles.
Mass and Charge of the Electron

The Plum Pudding Model


• J. J. Thomson’s proposed model of the atom had:
• A spherical shape
• Uniformly distributed positive charge in which the
individual negatively charged electrons resided
The Nucleus

Rutherford’s Experiment
• Rutherford studied how positively charged
alpha particles interacted with solid matter.
• By aiming the particles at a thin sheet of gold
foil, he expected the paths of the alpha
particles to be only slightly altered by a
collision with an electron.
• The experiment is illustrated on the next slide.
The Nucleus
The Nucleus

• Although most of the alpha particles went


through the gold foil, a few of them bounced
back, some at large angles.
The Nucleus
• Rutherford concluded that the plum pudding
model was incorrect because it could not explain
the results of the gold foil experiment.

• In Rutherford’s
nuclear model, the
atom is composed
of a dense,
positively charged
nucleus
surrounded by
negative electrons.
The Nucleus

The Proton and the Neutron


• A proton is a subatomic particle carrying a
charge equal to but opposite that of an
electron.
• A neutron is a subatomic particle that has a
mass nearly equal to that of a proton, but
which carries no electric charge.
Quiz
1. What is the smallest particle of matter that retains the
properties of the element called?

A atom CORRECT

B neutron

C electron

D nucleus
Quiz
2. What tool was used to determine the charge of an
electron?

A plum pudding C silver pellets

B gold foil D cathode-ray tube


CORRECT
Quiz

3. Which of the following is incorrect?

A Atoms are divisible into smaller subatomic particles.

B Almost all of an atom’s mass is contained in a tiny,


dense region in the center of the atom.

C Rutherford concluded that the plum


pudding model was correct. CORRECT

D Rutherford concluded that the nucleus contains


positively charged particles called protons.
Quiz

4. Which of the following is correct about the atom?

A Its dense nucleus is C It is made up of two


negatively charged. subatomic particles.

B Its nucleus is composed D It is spherical.


of neutrons and
CORRECT
electrons.

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