Subatomic Particles

of Atoms
 SUBATOMIC PARTICLES

• Particles that are smaller than the atom are

called subatomic particles.
• The three main subatomic particles that form
an atom are protons, neutrons, and electrons.
• The center of the atom is called the nucleus.
 PROTONS AND NEUTRONS
• Protons and neutrons make up the nucleus of an
atom.
 PROTONS AND NEUTRONS
• All protons are identical to each other, and all
neutrons are identical to each other.
• Protons have a positive electrical charge, so
they are often represented with the mark of a
"+" sign.
• Neutrons have no electrical charge and are
said to help hold the protons together
(protons are positively charged particles and
should repel each other).
• Protons were discovered by
Ernest Rutherford in the year
1919, when he performed his
gold foil experiment.
• He concluded that protons
exist in a nucleus and have a
positive nuclear charge. The
atomic number or proton
number is the number of
protons present in an atom.
The atomic number
determines an element (e.g.,
the element of atomic
number 6 is carbon).
 • Neutrons are located in the
Neutrons were discovered nucleus with the protons.
by James Chadwick in 1932
• Along with protons, they
make up almost all of the
mass of the atom. The
neutrons in an element
determine the isotope of
an atom, and often its
stability. The number of
neutrons is not necessarily
equal to the number of
protons.
Electrons were discovered • Electrons are located in an
by Sir John Joseph
Thomson in 1897.
electron cloud, which is the
area surrounding the
nucleus of the atom.
Electrons can abbreviated
as e-.
• Electrons have a negative
charge that is equal in
magnitude to the positive
charge of the protons.
 PROPERTIES OF THE THREE MAIN
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES
SUBATOMIC
PARTICLE CHARGE MASS, GRAMS LOCATION IN
(SYMBOL) THE ATOM

ELECTRONS (e⁻) -1 9.109 x 10⁻²⁸ OUTSIDE NUCLEUS

PROTONS (p⁺) +1 1.672 x 10⁻²⁴ NUCLEUS

NEUTRONS (n⁰) 0 1.675 x 10⁻²⁴ NUCLEUS