ATOMIC STRUCTURE

Timeline: 400 BC, Scientist: Democritus (Greek Philosopher)

Democritus was a Greek philosopher who was the first person to use the term atom (atomos: meaning indivisible).
He thought that if you take a piece of matter and divide it and continue to divide it you will eventually come to a
point where you could not divide it any more. This fundamental unit was what Democritus called an atom. He
called this the theory of the universe.

 All matter consists of atoms, which are bits of matter too small to be seen.

 There is an empty space between atoms.

 Atoms are completely solid.

 Atoms have no internal structure.

 Each atom (of a different substance) is different in size, weight and shape.

Timeline: 1800’s, Scientist: John Dalton

JOHN DALTON’S ATOMIC MODEL:

1. All matter consists of tiny particles called atoms.

2. Atoms are indestructible and unchangeable.

3. Elements are characterized by the weight of their atoms.

4. When elements react, it is their atoms that have combined to form new compounds.

Timeline: 1890’s, Scientist: J.J Thomson

J.J Thomson was a credited for discovering the electron. Thomson’s experiments also showed that the negative
particles are all alike and smaller than atoms. The negative particles were later named electrons.

THOMSON’S ATOMIC MODEL

Thomson predicted what an atom should look like.

1. Because of its design this model is known as the plum pudding model.

2. Each atom is a sphere filled with positively charged ‘fluid’. The negatively charged particles are
suspended in this ‘fluid’. This resembles the plums in the pudding. He did not predict the movement of
these negative.

Timeline: 1910’s, Scientist: Ernest Rutherford

Ernest Rutherford was not convinced about the model of the atom proposed by Thomson. He thus set up his now
famous Gold Foil Experiment.

RUTHERFORD’S ATOMIC MODEL (AKA THE PLANETARY MODEL)

1. The nucleus of the atom is a dense mass of positively charged particles and the electrons orbit the nucleus.

3. A problem raised was: Why are the negatively charged particles not attracted by the positively charged nucleus.

4. Rutherford stated that the atom was like a mini solar system and that the electrons orbited the nucleus in a wide
orbit. That is why it is known as the planetary model.

Timeline: 1910’s, Scientist: Niels Bohr

Niels Bohr agreed with the planetary model of the atom, but also knew that it had a few flaws. Using his
knowledge of energy and quantum physics he was able to perfect Rutherford’s model. He was able to answer why
the electrons did not collapse into the nucleus.

BOHR’S ATOMIC MODEL (AKA THE RUTHERFORD-BOHR MODEL)

1. Electrons orbit the nucleus in orbits that have a set size and energy.

2. The lower the energy of the electron, the lower the orbit.

3. This means that as electrons fill up the orbitals, they will fill the lower energy level first.

4. If that energy level is fill (or at capacity), a new energy level will begin.

5. Radiation is when an electron moves from one level to another.

Problems with this theory: Electrons do not travel on a specific orbit or path.

Timeline: 1920’s, Scientist: Erwin Schrödinger

Erwin Schrödinger used the Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle to come up with the atomic model that we still use
today. SCHRÖDINGER’S ATOMIC MODEL (AKA THE CLOUD MODEL)

1. An electron does not travel in an exact orbit.

2. We can predict where it will probably be.

3. We cannot say for certain where it is, but only where it ought to be.

4. The type of probability orbit is dependent on the energy level described by Bohr.
THE STRUCTURE OF AN ATOM

All things are composed of matter; you, me and everything around us is made up of matter. Matter is a physical
substance that takes up space and has mass. An atom is the basic unit of matter. An atom is defined as the smallest
particle into which an element can be divided without losing the properties of that element. Atoms are the smallest
type of unique matter. All atoms are made up of subatomic particles which are identical in all atoms. It is the way
in which these subatomic particles are put together which determine the properties and type of atom that is
formed.

An atom is made up of a dense centre called the nucleus, and a cloud of electrons surrounding it. Electrons are
arranged in energy levels or shells, and different energy levels can hold different numbers of electrons. The
nucleus has two types of particles called protons and neutrons. The protons are positively charged. The neutrons
have no charge (neutral). Both protons and electrons have the same size of electrical charge, but the proton is
positive and the electron negative.

Protons, Neutrons & Electrons

The number of protons in an atom determines the identity and to a large extent the chemical properties of an atom.
The number of protons is known as the Atomic Number. In the periodic table atoms are arranged in atomic
number order.

PROPRTIES OF PROTON, NEUTRON ANFD ELECTRONS

RUTHERFORD GOLD-FOIL EXPERIMENT

Physicist Ernest Rutherford established the nuclear theory of the atom with his gold-foil experiment. When he
shot a beam of alpha particles at a sheet of gold foil, a few of the particles were deflected. He concluded that a
tiny, dense nucleus was causing the deflections. The nucleus was postulated as small and dense to account for
the scattering of alpha particles from thin gold foil.

Relative Atomic Mass is the ratio of the average mass of one atom of an element to one twelfth of the mass of an
atom of carbon-12.

1/12 the mass of a C atom is 2.00 x 10-26 kg

12 = 1.66 x 10 -27 kg

Example, RAM of Oxygen = 2.66 x 10-26 Kg

= 1.66 x 10-27 Kg
= 15.96 ~ 16

ACTUAL MASS OF ATOMS

C - 2.00 x 10-26 kg

O - 2.66 x 10-26 kg

Br - 1.33 x 10-25 kg
An atomic mass unit or AMU is a physical constant equal to one-twelfth of the mass of an
unbound atom of carbon-12. AMU is dimensionless. It is a unit of mass used to express atomic
masses and molecular masses. One AMU is equal to approximately 1.66 × 10 −27grams.

ELEMENT RAM ATOMIC MASS OF ONE ATOM

(Kg)

CARBON 12 AMU 12 X 1.66 × 10 −27

MAGNESIUM 24 AMU 24 x 1.66 × 10 −27

OXYGEN 16 AMU 16 x 1.66 × 10 −27

In chemistry and physics, the ATOMIC NUMBER of a chemical element (also known as its proton number) is
the number of protons found in the nucleus of an atom of that element, and therefore identical to the charge
number of the nucleus.

The MASS NUMBER of an atom equals the sum of protons and neutrons in it. Mass number is also called
nucleon number.

Electrons have a charge of -1 and a relative mass of 0 AMU. TB:P4

The total number of electrons in an atom is always the same as the number of protons in the nucleus. This means
atoms have no overall electrical charge.

Protons have a charge of +1 and a relative mass of 1 AMU.

Neutrons have a charge of 0 and a relative mass of 1 AMU.

In a neutral atom, the number of electron is equal to the number of protons.

Energy levels and shells

The electronic structure of an atom is a description of how the electrons are arranged, which can be shown in a
diagram or by numbers. There is a link between the position of an element in the periodic table and its electronic
structure. The chemical properties are governed by the number and arrangement of the electrons.

Electrons are arranged in different shells around the nucleus. The innermost shell or lowest energy level is filled
first. Each succeeding shell can only hold a certain number of electrons before it become full. The innermost shell
can hold a maximum of two electrons, the second shell a maximum of eight, and so on. The table gives the
maximum capacity of the first three shells. i.e. Each energy level can hold 2n 2.

Maximum capacity of the first three shells

ENERGY LEVEL OR SHELL MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ELECTRONS

FIRST 2

SECOND 8

THIRD 18

Electron Configuration
Arrangement or distribution of electrons in the orbitals (shells) of an atom. Atom comprises of subatomic
particles like electrons, protons, and neutrons among which only the number of electrons are considered for
electronic configuration. Electrons are filled in such a way that they achieve a high stable configuration.

A lithium atom, for example, has three electrons. Two are in the first energy level, and one in the second.

A carbon atom has six electrons. Two are in the first energy level, and four in the second energy level.
Arrangement of electrons in a lithium atom

Arrangement of electrons in a carbon atom.

A calcium atom has 20 electrons. Two are in the first energy level, and eight in the second energy level, eight in
the third energy level and two in the fourth energy level.

Diagrams the Planetary Model of the Atom

ISOTOPES TB:P3; TC:P34

Isotopes are atoms with the same number of protons, but differing numbers of neutrons. Isotopes are different
forms of a single element.

Hydrogen has no neutrons at all; there's also a hydrogen isotope called deuterium, with one neutron, and another,
tritium, with two neutrons.

Hydrogen Deuterium Tritium

Examples: Carbon 12 and Carbon 14 are both isotopes of carbon, one with 6 neutrons and one with 8 neutrons
(both with 6 protons).

They have similar chemical properties because isotopes of an element have the same number of electrons as an
atom of that element. The electron arrangement is the same owing to same chemical properties. However they
have different numbers of neutrons, which affects the mass number. Mass number determines the physical
properties such as boiling/melting/density etc.

Uses of radioactive isotopes TC:P35; TB:P3

Radioactive Isotopes

Radioactive isotopes, also called radioisotope, radionuclide, or radioactive nuclide, are species of the

same chemical element with different masses, whose nuclei are unstable and dissipate excess energy by
spontaneously emitting radiation in the form of alpha, beta, and gamma rays.

For example, hydrogen, the lightest element, has three isotopes with mass numbers 1, 2, and 3. Only hydrogen-3
(tritium), however, is a radioactive isotope, the other two being stable. More than 1,000 radioactive isotopes of the
various elements are known. Approximately 50 of these are found in nature; the rest are produced artificially as
the direct products of nuclear reactions or indirectly as the radioactive descendants of these products.

Radioactive isotopes have many useful applications. In medicine, for example, cobalt-60 is extensively employed
as a radiation source to arrest the development of cancer. Other radioactive isotopes are used as tracers for
diagnostic purposes as well as in research on metabolic processes.
Iodine-131 has proved effective in treating hyperthyroidism. Carbon-14, which is used in a breath test to detect
the ulcer-causing bacteria Helicobacter pylori. In industry, radioactive isotopes of various kinds are used for
measuring the thickness of metal or plastic sheets; their precise thickness is indicated by the strength of the
radiations that penetrate the material being inspected. They also may be employed in place of large  X-
ray machines to examine manufactured metal parts for structural defects. Other applications include the use of
radioactive isotopes as compact sources of electrical power—e.g., plutonium-238 in spacecraft. In such cases,
the heat produced in the decay of the radioactive isotope is converted into electricity by means of thermoelectric
junction circuits or related devices.

Quiz Check 1

1. The nucleus of an atom contains ______ and _______.

2. A proton has a relative mass of _____ and a relative charge of ________ .

3. An electron has a ______ mass and a charge of ______ .

4. A neutron has a relative mass of _____ and a charge of _______ .

39
5. An atom of potassium is represented by the symbol 19 K. How many protons, electrons and neutrons are
there in a potassium atom?

6. An atom of chlorine contains 17 protons, 18 neutrons and 17 electrons. Write the atomic symbol for
chlorine.

Quiz Check 2

1. What are isotopes? Give an example of an element with isotopes.

2. The table below shows four atoms.

Atom Nucleon number Proton number Number of Number of

neutrons electrons

A 14 6

B 15 7

C 15 6

D 16 8
Complete the table. Which two atoms are isotopes? Which atom has the greatest mass?

Quiz Check 2
 4. Draw the electronic structure of the following: (a) boron, (b) phosphorus, (c) chloride ion,
(d) calcium ion.

Solution to Quick check 1

1. The nucleus of an atom contains protons and neutrons.

2. A proton has a relative mass of 1 and a relative charge of +1 .

3. An electron has a negligible mass and a charge

of - 1.

4. A neutron has a relative mass of 1 and a charge

of 0.

5. 19 protons, 19 electrons and 20 neutrons.

35
6. 17Cl

Solution to Quick check 2

Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.
An example of an element with isotopes is hydrogen.

Atom Nucleon number Proton number Number of Number of electrons

neutrons

A 14 6 8 6

B 15 7 8 7

C 15 6 9 6

D 16 8 8 8

(b) Which two atoms are isotopes? A and C

(c) Which atom has the greatest mass? D

Solution to Quick check 3

(a) Boron
 (b) Phosphorus

(C) Chloride ion

(D) Calcium ion