DISCOVERY OF THE

ATOMIC
STRUCTURE
 Theadvances in atomic structure and quantum
mechanics have led to the discovery of other
fundamental particles. The discovery of
subatomic particles has been the base for many
other discoveries and inventions.
What Is Atomic Structure?
 The atomic structure of an element refers to the constitution of
its nucleus and the arrangement of the electrons around it.
 Primarily,the atomic structure of matter is made up of protons,
electrons and neutrons.
 The protons and neutrons make up the nucleus of the atom,
which is surrounded by the electrons belonging to the atom.
The atomic number of an element describes the total number
of protons in its nucleus.
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES
 PROTONS
• Protons are positively charged subatomic particles. The charge of a
proton is 1e, which corresponds to approximately 1.602 × 10-19
• The mass of a proton is approximately 1.672 × 10-24
• Protons are over 1800 times heavier than electrons.
• The total number of protons in the atoms of an element is always
equal to the atomic number of the element.
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES

 NEUTRONS
• The mass of a neutron is almost the same as that of a proton, i.e.,
1.674×10-24
• Neutrons are electrically neutral particles and carry no charge.
• Different isotopes of an element have the same number of
protons but vary in the number of neutrons present in their
respective nuclei.
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES

 ELECTRONS
• The charge of an electron is -1e, which approximates to -1.602 × 10-
19

• The mass of an electron is approximately 9.1 × 10-31.

• Due to the relatively negligible mass of electrons, they are ignored
when calculating the mass of an atom.
 Neutral atoms have equal numbers of protons and electrons.
However, atoms may gain or lose electrons in order to increase their
stability, and the resulting charged entity is called an ion.
 Atoms of different elements have different atomic structures because
they contain different numbers of protons and electrons. This is the
reason for the unique characteristics of different elements.
Atomic Models

 In the 18th and 19th centuries, many scientists attempted to explain the
structure of the atom with the help of atomic models. Each of these models had
its own merits and demerits and was pivotal to the development of the modern
atomic model. The most notable contributions to the field were by the
scientists such as John Dalton, J.J. Thomson, Ernest Rutherford, Niels Bohr,
and Erwin Schrodinger . Their ideas on the structure of the atom are discussed
in this subsection.
3
Dalton’s Solid Sphere Atom
 The English chemist John Dalton suggested that
all matter is made up of atoms, which were
indivisible and indestructible.
 Based on all his observations, Dalton proposed his
model of an atom. It is often referred to as
the billiard ball model. He defined an atom to be a
ball-like structure, as the concepts of atomic
nucleus and electrons were unknown at the time.
Dalton’s Atomic Theory
 The postulates of Dalton’s theory which he wrote in his book entitled: A NEW SYSTEM OF
CHEMICAL PHILOSOPHY published in 1808 are the following:

 1. ALL MATTER IS COMPOSED OF INDIVISIBLE AND INDESTRUCTIBLE ATOMS

WHICH ARE TINY, HARD SPHERES.
 2. ALL ATOMS OF ANY ONE ELEMENT ARE IDENTICAL; THE ATOMS OF
DIFFERENT ELEMENTS ARE DIFFERENT AND HAVE DIFFERENT PROPERTIES.
 3. WHEN MATTER UNDERGOES CHANGES, WHETHER PHYSICAL OR
CHEMICAL, THE ATOMS ARE MERELY REARRANGED. NO ATOM IS CREATED
OR DESTROYED.
 4. ATOMS OF DIFFERENT ELEMENTS COMBINE IN A DEFINITE RATIO OF
SMALL WHOLE NUMBERS TO FORM COMPOUNDS WHICH ARE COMPOSED OF
COMPOUND ATOMS.
Demerits of Dalton’s Atomic Theory
• The theory was unable to explain the existence of isotopes.
• Nothing about the structure of the atom was appropriately explained.
• Later, scientists discovered particles inside the atom that proved the atoms
are divisible.

 The discovery of particles inside atoms led to a better understanding of

chemical species; these particles inside the atoms are called subatomic
particles.
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES
SUBATOMIC PARTICLES
Thomson’s Plum
Pudding Model

 He was later awarded the

Nobel Prize for the discovery
of “electrons”. His work is
based on an experiment
called the
cathode ray experiment.
Thomson’s Plum Pudding Model

 Based on conclusions from his cathode ray

experiment, Thomson described the atomic
structure as a positively charged sphere into
which negatively charged electrons were
embedded.
 It is commonly referred to as the “plum
pudding model” because it can be visualised
as a plum pudding dish where the pudding
describes the positively charged atom and the
plum pieces describe the electrons.
 Thomson’s atomic structure
described atoms as electrically
neutral, i.e., the positive and the
negative charges were of equal
magnitude.
 Limitations of Thomson’s
Atomic Structure: Thomson’s
atomic model does not clearly
explain the stability of an atom.
Also, further discoveries of other
subatomic particles couldn’t be
placed inside his atomic model.
Rutherford’s Nuclear Model
Rutherford’s Nuclear Model
 Rutherford, a student of J. J. Thomson, modified the atomic structure with
the discovery of another subatomic particle called “Nucleus”. His
atomic model is based on the Alpha ray scattering experiment.
 Based on the from his experiment, Rutherford proposed his own atomic
structure, which is as follows.
• The nucleus is at the center of an atom, where most of the charge
and mass is concentrated.
• The atomic structure is spherical.
• Electrons revolve around the nucleus in a circular orbit, similar to
the way planets orbit the sun.
 Bohr’s Planetary Model
 In 1913, Danish physicist Niels Bohr applied Max
Planck’s quantum theory to the nuclear atom of Ernest
Rutherford, thus formulating the well-known planetary
model of the atom, wherein electrons orbit a central
nucleus in well-defined levels of energy. Note that Bohr
stated that electrons in the atom follow elliptical orbits (not
circles as is often pictured).
 Also note that Bohr viewed the atom as a classical entity
when it is not radiating energy, and, importantly, as a
quantum entity when it is radiating.
Bohr’s Planetary Model
 Bohr explained that electrons can be moved into different orbits with
the addition of energy. When the energy is removed, the electrons
return back to their ground state, emitting a corresponding amount of
energy—a quantum of light, or photon.
 According to the Bohr model, the electrons encircle the nucleus of
the atom in specific allowable paths called orbits.
 When the electron is in one of these orbits, its energy is fixed or
constant.
 The ground state of the hydrogen atom, where its energy is lowest, is
when the electron is in the orbit that is closest to the nucleus.
 The orbits that are further from the nucleus are all of successively
greater energy.
 The electron is not allowed to occupy any of the spaces in between
the orbits.
 Schrodinger’s Quantum Mechanical Model

 In 1926 Erwin Schrödinger, an Austrian physicist,

took the Bohr atom model one step further.
Schrödinger used mathematical equations to describe
the likelihood of finding an electron in a certain
position. This atomic model is known as the quantum
mechanical model of the atom.
 Unlike the Bohr model, the quantum mechanical
model does not define the exact path of an electron,
but rather, predicts the odds of the location of the
electron. This model can be portrayed as a nucleus
surrounded by an electron cloud.
 Schrodinger’s
Quantum Mechanical
Model

 Where the cloud is most dense, the

probability of finding the electron is
greatest, and conversely, the electron
is less likely to be in a less dense area
of the cloud. Thus, this model
introduced the concept of sub-energy
levels.
• Louis de Broglie proposed that all particles could be treated as matter waves with a
wavelength , given by the following equation:

• Erwin Schrödinger proposed the quantum mechanical model of the atom, which treats
electrons as matter waves.
• Schrödinger's equation, , can be solved to yield a series of wave function , each of which is
associated with an electron binding energy, .
• The square of the wave function, , represents the probability of finding an electron in a
given region within the atom.
• An atomic orbital is defined as the region within an atom that encloses where the
electron is likely to be 90% of the time.
• The Heisenberg uncertainty principle states that we can't know both the energy
and position of an electron. Therefore, as we learn more about the electron's
position, we know less about its energy, and vice versa.
• Electrons have an intrinsic property called spin, and an electron can have one of
two possible spin values: spin-up or spin-down.
• Any two electrons occupying the same orbital must have opposite spins.