ATOMIC STRUCTURE

Atomic Structure
All matter is composed of
atoms.

Understanding the
structure of atoms is
critical to understanding
the properties of matter
 HISTORY OF THE ATOM

1808 John Dalton

suggested that all matter was made up of

tiny spheres that were able to bounce around

with perfect elasticity and called them

ATOMS
 DALTONS ATOMIC THEORY

16 X + 8 Y 8 X2Y
 Subatomic Particles

Mass Charge Charge

Particle
(g) (Coulombs) (units)

Electron (e-) 9.1 x 10-28 -1.6 x 10-19 -1

-24 -19
Proton (p) 1.67 x 10 +1.6 x 10 +1

Neutron (n) 1.67 x 10-24 0 0

mass p = mass n = 1840 x mass e-

 HISTORY OF THE ATOM

1898 Joseph John Thompson

found that atoms could sometimes eject a

far smaller negative particle which he called

an

ELECTRON
A = alpha J.J. Thomson, measured mass/charge of e-
B = gamma
C = beta (1906 Nobel Prize in Physics)
CHARGE OF AN ELECTRON
gold foil

helium nuclei

Millikan oil drop

experiment
 HISTORY OF THE ATOM

1910 Ernest Rutherford

oversaw Geiger and Marsden carrying out his

famous experiment.

they fired Helium nuclei at a piece of gold foil

which was only a few atoms thick.

they found that although most of them

passed through. About 1 in 10,000 hit
Rutherford’s
experiment.
Plum Pudding model of
an atom.
 Results of foil
experiment if Plum
Pudding model had been
correct.
Actual Results.
A nuclear atom viewed
in cross section.
Rutherford’s Model of the
Atom

atomic radius ~ 100 pm = 1 x 10-10 m

nuclear radius ~ 5 x 10-3 pm = 5 x 10-15 m
 Atomic Structure
Atoms are composed of
-protons – positively charged particles
-neutrons – neutral particles
-electrons – negatively charged particles

Protons and neutrons are located in the

nucleus. Electrons are found in orbitals
surrounding the nucleus.
 HELIUM ATOM
Shell
proton

+
N
-
+
- N

electron neutron
 Atomic Structure
Every different atom has a
characteristic number of protons
in the nucleus.

atomic number = number of

protons

Atoms with the same atomic number

have the same chemical properties
and belong to the same element.
 Atomic Structure
Each proton and neutron has a
mass of approximately 1 dalton.

The sum of protons and neutrons

is the atom’s atomic mass.

Isotopes – atoms of the same

element that have different
atomic mass numbers due to
different numbers of neutrons.
 ATOMIC STRUCTURE

He
2
Atomic number
the number of protons in an atom

Atomic mass
the number of protons and
4
neutrons in an atom

number of electrons = number of protons

ATOMIC NUMBER (Z) = number of protons in nucleus
MASS NUMBER (A) = number of protons + number of
neutrons
= atomic
number (Z) + number of neutrons
ISOTOPS are atoms of the same element (X) with
different numbers
Mass Number of Aneutrons in the nucleus
ZX
Element Symbol
Atomic Number

1 2 3
1H 1H (D) H
1 (T)
235 238
92 U 92 U
Atomic Structure
Atomic Structure
Two isotopes of
sodium.
 HISTORY OF THE ATOM

1913 Niels Bohr

studied under Rutherford at the Victoria

University in Manchester.

Bohr refined Rutherford's idea by adding

that the electrons were in orbits. Rather
like planets orbiting the sun. With each
orbit only able to contain a set number of
electrons.
MULTIELECTRON ATOMS
ELECTRONS IN ORBIT ABOUT
THE NUCLEUS
 Bohr’s Model
of
the Atom
1. e- can have only
(1913) (quantized)
specific
energy values
2. light is emitted as
e- moves from one
energy level to a
lower energy level
1
En = -RH ( )
n2

(principal quantum number) = 1,2,3,…

(Rydberg constant) = 2.18 x 10-18J
The Bohr Model of the Atom
Atomic Structure
 The Bohr Model of the
Atom:
Ground and Excited
States
• In the Bohr model of hydrogen, the lowest
amount of energy hydrogen’s one electron
can have corresponds to being in the n =
1 orbit. We call this its ground state.
• When the atom gains energy, the electron
leaps to a higher energy orbit. We call
this an excited state.
• The atom is less stable in an excited
state and so it will release the extra
energy to return to the ground state.
– Either all at once or in several steps.
 Line Emission Spectrum of Hydrogen Atoms

Every element has a unique emission spectrum

 The Bohr Model of the
Atom:
Hydrogen Spectrum
• Every hydrogen atom has identical orbits, so
every hydrogen atom can undergo the same
energy transitions.
• However, since the distances between the
orbits in an atom are not all the same, no
two leaps in an atom will have the same
energy.
– The closer the orbits are in energy, the
lower the energy of the photon emitted.
– Lower energy photon = longer wavelength.
• Therefore, we get an emission spectrum that
has a lot of lines that are unique to
hydrogen.
The Bohr Model of the
Atom:
Hydrogen Spectrum
 Bohr showed the
energy a H atom can
have is equal to:
1
En = -RH ( )
n2

Ephoton = E = Ef - Ei
1
Ef = -RH ( 2 )
nf
1
Ei = -RH ( 2 )
ni
1 1
E = RH( 2 )
ni n2f
RH is the Rydberg constant
n is the principal quantum number
Line spectrum of
some elements
 LIGHT EMISSION OF SODIUM ATOM

Line spectrum
 Atomic Structure
Neutral atoms have the same
number of protons and electrons.

Ions are charged atoms.

-cations – have more protons
than electrons and are
positively charged
-anions – have more electrons
than protons and are negatively
charged
 An ion is formed when an atom, or group
of atoms, has a net positive or
negative charge (why?).
neutral atom looses one or more electrons
comes a cation.

11 protons 11 protons
Na 11 electrons Na+
10 electrons

neutral atom gains one or more electrons

comes an anion.

17 protons 17 protons
Cl 17 electrons Cl- 18 electrons