1. Atomic Structure
Basic and Beyond

2. What are the 3 major parts of an atom?
Protons
Electrons
Neutrons

3. Where is each located?

4. What are the charges on each basic part?

5. Protons Who discovered the proton? What experiment did he use?
Protons are positively charged particles
found in the atomic nucleus.
Protons were discovered by Ernest Rutherford.
Protons have a mass.
We designate this mass as 1 amu (atomic mass unit).
Protons determine the atomic number and thus
the identity of the substance.
Who discovered the proton? What experiment did he use?

6. Can protons be broken down?
Experiments done in the late 1960's and early 1970's showed that protons are made from other particles called quarks.
Protons are made from
two 'up' quarks and
one 'down' quark.

7. Neutrons Why would a neutron be hard to discover?
Neutrons are uncharged particles
found in the atomic nucleus.
They have a mass of 1 amu
Isotopes result when neutron number changes
The decimals in the atomic mass are from
the AVERAGE of the isotopes.
Neutrons were discovered by
James Chadwick in 1932.
Why would a neutron be hard to discover?

8. Isotopes
Example:

9. Can Neutrons Be Broken Down?
Experiments done in the late 1960's and early 1970's showed that neutrons are made from other particles called quarks. Neutrons are made from one 'up' quark and two 'down' quarks.

10. The Nucleus The nucleus contains most of an atom's mass. Why?
The nucleus is the central part of an atom.
It is composed of protons and neutrons.
Unlike in a living cell, the nucleus of an
atom is not a physical thing.
It is the name for the area that holds
the protons and neutrons.
The nucleus contains most of an atom's mass. Why?

11. What forces hold the atom together?
Electromagnetic
likes repel,
opposites attract (+ or -)
Strong Force
interacts with hadrons
or nucleons so the protons
and neutrons
binds them together
works only at distances
smaller than 1
quadrillionth of a meter!!!
Weak Force
works with quarks and leptons and decides how flavors change
helps stabilize nuclei through beta decay
shorter distances than the strong force!
Gravity Since this binds matter together based on mass, we think this plays no role in atoms

12. Electrons Electrons are negatively charged particles
that surround the atom's nucleus.
The mass of an electron is so small
that it is called “zero”.
Electrons determine chemical properties
of the atom.
Electrons are arranged in orbitals
that are part of probability clouds.
Who discovered electrons? What experiment was used? Why were they easy to discover?

13. What is the Electron Cloud Model? Diagram 1:

14. So subatomic particles are themselves made of smaller particles!
Subatomic particles composed of fast moving points of energy called quarks
Quark Calculations (for protons and neutrons)
Each proton is 2 up quarks and 1 down quark
2(2/3) – 1(1/3) = 4/3 – 1/3 = 3/3 or +1
Each neutron is 2 down quarks and 1 up quark
2(-1/3) + 2/3 = 0
Each electron is composed of 2 down quarks
3(-1/3) = -1

15. What is a quark, anyway? fundamental particle which
possesses electric charge
and 'strong' charge.
They combine in groups of
two or three to form
mesons and baryons
The are held together by the strong force.

16. There are several kinds of quarks
quarks come in six different species (physicists call them 'flavors') each flavor has a unique mass.

17. So, are there other characteristics of quarks?
The two lightest are
'up' and 'down' quarks
They combine to form protons and neutrons.
The heavier quarks aren't
found in nature and have
so far only been observed
in particle accelerators.

18. Can we get smaller?
Fermions Bosons Leptons Hadrons And more So we can catagorize And get smaller But quarks are still the smallest for now

19. Can things get even smaller?
Higgs boson Neutrino And more are hypothesized sub sub sub particles! Still looking for evidence for these. . .

20. Why are sub subatomic particles important?
Predict properties such as
nuclear decay
Explain types of
nuclear decay
Help us to understand
organization of matter
Could lead to many things in the future: energy, new elements

21. How are new particles discovered?

22. How do accelerators work?