Material Structure Levels
IMU 221  Sub atomic – electrons and nuclei (protons and
Materials Science
ATOMIC STRUCTURE
Overview
To build your knowledge of atoms, material structure, chemical
bonding, and properties of materials.
This knowledge leads to a better understanding of the chemical,
physical and mechanical properties of materials.
In later sections of the course this knowledge will be valuable
in understanding the reasons for using a particular engineering
material, and the techniques necessary to well use it.
Atomic Structure
Atom: The smallest structural unit (of all solids, liquids
& gases) of an element that retains the chemical
properties of the element. Atoms can exist alone or
in combinations with other atoms forming
molecules.
Element: One of less than 118 pure chemical
substances. An element is a substance composed of
atoms with identical atomic number; and cannot be
broken down into substances of simpler composition
any further by chemical reactions.
neutrons)
Atomic – organization of atoms or molecules

 Microscopic – groups of atoms that are
normally agglomerated together
 Mesoscopic- viewable with a magnifier
 Macroscopic – viewable with the un-aided eye
Atomic Structure
Materials can be classified according to their
different behavior, both physical and
chemical.
To understand why materials are different
from each other, we first must understand
some basic chemistry about how material is
made, and how this influences its properties.
Molecule: A particle formed by the chemical bonding of
two or more atoms. The molecule is the smallest
particle of a chemical compound (matter) that
retains the chemical properties of the compound.
Compound: A material formed by the chemical
combination of elements in defined proportions.
Compounds can be chemically decomposed into
simpler substances.
All compounds are molecules, but not all molecules are
compounds.
For Ex.: Molecular hydrogen H2 and oxygen O2 are not
compounds, but H2O and CO2 are compounds.
Matter: is anything that has mass and occupies space.
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 Fundamental Units of
Modern Atomic Theory Atom

Bohr conclude his atomic theory as: Nucleus: central part of atom.

• Atoms consist of subatomic particles
• The nucleus contains protons (+ charge) and
neutrons (no charge).
• A cloud of electrons (- charge) orbits the nucleus.
• The volume of the nucleus is extremely small
compared to the volume of an atom.
• The atom is electrically neutral since the number
of electrons = number of protons
Proton: A sub-atomic particle with a positive charge of 1.60x10-19
coulombs and a mass of 1.67x10-24 kg. Protons are found in the
nucleus of atoms.
Neutron: A sub-atomic particle with no charge and a mass of
1.67x10-24 kg. Neutrons are found in the nucleus of atoms.
Electron: A sub-atomic particle with a negative charge of 1.60 ×
10-19 coulombs and a mass of 9.11 × 10-28 kg. Electrons are
generally found in orbit around the nucleus of an atom, but may
be gained or lost during ion formation.

Modern Atomic Theory

All elements are made up of different combinations of

these subatomic particles. The number of each type of
sub-atomic particle in an atom can be determined from
the information about that particular element contained
in the Periodic Table. This is a table of all the
known elements and their basic properties,
arranged in order of atomic number.

INTERATOMIC BONDING
Modern Atomic Theory
 Atoms link to form materials. When this linkage is
self-sufficient, the resultant will be a gas, a liquid or
The a solid.
arrangement of
particles in an For example;
atom. Atoms bond to form long chains→Polymers
PROTONS (+ Atoms bond in regular 3-D arrays→Metals
charge),
NEUTRONS  The bonding b/w atoms is the result of the universal
(no charge) tendency of all systems to take up their lowest
and energy state. Atoms achieve their lowest energy
ELECTRONS level by the possession of 8 electrons in their outer
(- charge). most shell (except for the first shell which is stable
only with 2e-)

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 ATOMIC STRUCTURE
The Periodic Table:
A Preview
Electrons are arranged in Energy Levels or  A “periodic table” is an
Shells around the nucleus of an atom. arrangement of elements in which
the elements are separated into
• first shell a maximum of 2 electrons
groups based on a set of repeating
• second shell a maximum of 8 electrons properties
• third shell a maximum of 8 electrons
The periodic table allows you to
easily compare the properties of
one element to another

The Periodic Table:

A Preview
 Each horizontal row (there are 7 of
them) is called a period
Each vertical column is called a
group, or family
Elements in a group have similar
chemical and physical properties
Identified with a number and
either an “A” or “B”

 Considering the periodic table, the elements having

8e- in their outermost shell are inert gases.  Valence electrons: The electrons at the outermost
shell.
 They are chemically inactive. 8e-
H He

Li Be B C N O F Ne  Atoms of the elements having 5, 6, 7 e- in their

Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar outermost shell accept 3, 2, 1 electrons
K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr respectively.
N
Rb Sr Y Zr Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd In Sn Sb Te I Xe
b

Cs Ba * Hf
T
a
W Re Os Ir Pt Au Hg Tl Pb Bi Po At Rn  Those having 1, 2 or 3 e- give up their outermost
Fr Ra ** Rf
H
Sg Ns Hs Mt
shell electrons to remain with 8 e- in their
a
underlaying shell.
Light Transient Metals Non Metals
Metals
Electropositivity increases Electronegativity increases
 Atoms having 4 valance electrons may behave in
* La Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu either way.
** Ac Th Pa U Np Pu Am Cm Bk Cf Es Fm Md No Lr

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 Counting the Pieces
 Atomic Number = number of protons
 # of protons determines kind of atom.
 the same as the number of electrons in the
neutral atom.
 Mass Number = the number of protons +
neutrons.
Atomic Number
 Atoms are composed of identical
protons, neutrons, and electrons
 How then are atoms of one element
different from another element?
 Elements are different because they
contain different numbers of PROTONS
 The “atomic number” of an element is
the number of protons in the nucleus
# protons in an atom = # electrons

Mass Number
Atomic Number
Atomic number (Z) of an element is Mass number is the number of
the number of protons in the nucleus protons and neutrons in the nucleus
of each atom of that element. of an isotope: Mass # = p+ + n0
Element # of protons Atomic # (Z)
Nuclide p+ n0 e- Mass #
Carbon 6 6 Oxygen - 18 8 10 8 18

Phosphorus 15 15 Arsenic - 75 33 42 33 75

Gold 79 79 Phosphorus - 31 15 16 15 31

Complete Symbols Atomic Mass

 How heavy is an atom of oxygen?
Contain the symbol of the element,
  It depends, because there are different
the mass number and the atomic kinds of oxygen atoms.
number.  We are more concerned with the average
Superscript →
Mass atomic mass.
number  This is based on the abundance

Subscript →
Atomic
number
X (percentage) of each variety of that
element in nature.
 We don’t use grams for this mass because
the numbers would be too small.

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 Measuring Atomic Mass HELIUM ATOM
Shell
 Instead of grams, the unit we use proton
is the Atomic Mass Unit (amu)
 It is defined as one-twelfth the
+
N
-
mass of a carbon-12 atom. +
- N

 Carbon-12 chosen because of its isotope purity.

 Eachisotope has its own atomic neutron
electron
mass, thus we determine the
What do these particles consist of?
average from percent abundance.

ATOMIC STRUCTURE Properties of Metal and Non-Metals

He
Atomic number
the number of protons in an atom What distinguishes metallic from non-
metallic elements is the number of electrons
they have in the outermost shell of their
atoms. We call these valence electrons.
4 Atomic mass
the number of protons and
neutrons in an atom
An element will behave as a metal if it
number of electrons = number of protons
easily loses, or donates, one or more
electrons when forming chemical bonds.

Properties of Metal and Non-Metals

Non-Metals are elements that have outer electron

shells that are close to being full. They readily
accept electrons during chemical bonding.

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 SUMMARY
1. The Atomic Number of an atom = number of
protons in the nucleus.

2. The Atomic Mass of an atom = number of

Protons + Neutrons in the nucleus.

3. The number of Protons = Number of Electrons.

4. Electrons orbit the nucleus in shells.

5. Each shell can only carry a set number of electrons.