That’s when Greek philosopher Leucippus and his pupil Democritus first came up with the idea that

matter is composed of tiny particles. <some models like that of Leucippus, were just blind guesses. As
time went on, many more were the result of rigorous experimentation.

Key Points

 Dalton's atomic theory was the first complete attempt to describe all matter in terms of atoms
and their properties.
 Dalton based his theory on the law of conservation of mass and the law of constant
composition.
 The first part of his theory states that all matter is made of atoms, which are indivisible.
 The second part of the theory says all atoms of a given element are identical in mass and
properties.
 The third part says compounds are combinations of two or more different types of atoms.
 The fourth part of the theory states that a chemical reaction is a rearrangement of atoms.
 Parts of the theory had to be modified based on the discovery of subatomic particles and
isotopes.

Dalton's atomic theory

Part 1: All matter is made of atoms.

Dalton hypothesized that the law of conservation of mass and the law of
definite proportions could be explained using the idea of atoms. He proposed
that all matter is made of tiny indivisible particles called atoms, which he
imagined as "solid, massy, hard, impenetrable, movable particle(s)".

It is important to note that since Dalton did not have the necessary
instruments to see or otherwise experiment on individual atoms, he did not
have any insight into whether they might have any internal structure. We
might visualize Dalton's atom as a piece in a molecular modeling kit, where
different elements are spheres of different sizes and colors. While this is a
handy model for some applications, we now know that atoms are far from
being solid spheres.

Part 2: All atoms of a given element are identical in

mass and properties.
Dalton proposed that every single atom of an element, such as gold, is the
same as every other atom of that element. He also noted that the atoms of one
element differ from the atoms of all other elements. Today, we still know this
to be mostly true. A sodium atom is different from a carbon atom. Elements
may share some similar boiling points, melting points, and
electronegativities, but no two elements have the same exact set of properties.
[Why is this only MOSTLY true?]

Picture of a molecular modeling kit including multiple types of plastic

spheres in different colors that represent elements and stick-like plastic
"bonds".
A basic molecular modeling kit, including spherical atoms of different size and color that can be connected by
sticks to represent chemical bonds. Image credit: "Photo of modeling kit" by Sonia on Wikimedia
Commons, CC-BY 3.0
Part 3: Compounds are combinations of two or
more different types of atoms.
In the third part of Dalton's atomic theory, he proposed that compounds are
combinations of two or more different types of atoms. An example of such a
compound is table salt. Table salt is a combination of two separate elements
with unique physical and chemical properties. The first, sodium, is a highly
reactive metal. The second, chlorine, is a toxic gas. When they react, the
atoms combine in a 1:1 ratio to form white crystals of \text{NaCl}NaClN, a,
C, l, which we can sprinkle on our food.

Since atoms are indivisible, they will always combine in simple whole
number ratios. Therefore, it would not make sense to write a formula such
as \text{Na}_{0.5}\text{Cl}_{0.5}Na0.5Cl0.5N, a, start subscript, 0, point, 5,
end subscript, C, l, start subscript, 0, point, 5, end subscriptbecause you can't
have half of an atom!

Part 4: A chemical reaction is a rearrangement of

atoms.
In the fourth and final part of Dalton's atomic theory, he suggested that
chemical reactions don't destroy or create atoms. They merely rearranged the
atoms. Using our salt example again, when sodium combines with chlorine to
make salt, both the sodium and chlorine atoms still exist. They simply
rearrange to form a new compound.

What have we learned since Dalton proposed his

theory?
The short answer: a lot! For instance, we now know that atoms are not
indivisible—as stated in part one—because they are made up of protons,
neutrons, and electrons. The modern picture of an atom is very different from
Dalton's "solid, massy" particle. In fact, experiments by Ernest Rutherford,
Hans Geiger, and Ernest Marsden showed that atoms are mostly made up of
empty space.
 Image of tungsten diselenide, \text{WSe}_2WSe2W, S, e, start subscript, 2,
end subscript.
Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) allows us to see the atomic level structure of tungsten
selenide, WSe_22start subscript, 2, end subscript. Image credit: "STEM image" by Kazu Suenaga et al. on
Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
Part two of Dalton's theory had to be modified after mass spectrometry
experiments demonstrated that atoms of the same element can have different
masses because the number of neutrons can vary for different isotopes of the
same element. For more on isotopes, you can watch this video on atomic
number, mass number, and isotopes.

Despite these caveats, Dalton's atomic theory is still mostly true, and it forms
the framework of modern chemistry. Scientists have even developed the
technology to see the world on an atomic level!
History of Atomic Theory

Picture an atom. What does it look like? Most likely it will resemble something like this: a fairly large
nucleus surrounded by orbiting electrons whizzing around the nucleus. This image is a popular icon of
the atom, but it only vaguely represents our current model of what the atom looks like.

The Early Greeks

J.J. Thomson theorized that electrons were surrounded by a

positively charged material.

First, we are going to travel back a little over 2,000 years ago to the times of Aristotle and Democritus.
The Greek philosopher Aristotle believed that matter could be divided infinitely without changing its
properties. Democritus disagreed. He thought that matter could only be divided until you got to the
smallest particle (which he called the atom, coming from the Greek word atomos, meaning indivisible).
So, who was right? Aristotle was very convincing and did many experiments using the scientific method,
so more people believed him.

John Dalton and Atoms

It wasn't until around 2,000 years later, in the early 1800s, when John Dalton came along and disproved
Aristotle. Dalton went on to say that matter is made up of tiny particles, called atoms, that cannot be
divided into smaller pieces and cannot be destroyed. He also stated that all atoms of the same element
will be exactly the same and that atoms of different elements can combine to form compounds. The
really awesome thing about Dalton's model of the atom is that he came up with it without ever seeing
the atom! He had no concept of protons, neutrons or electrons. His model was created solely on
experiments that were macroscopic, or seen with the unaided eye.

Thomson and the Discovery of Electrons

A diagram of the Rutherford alpha particle experiment

Now, let's fast-forward to the late 1800s when J.J. Thomsondiscovered the electron. Thomson used
what was called a cathode ray tube, or an electron gun. You've probably seen a cathode ray tube
without even knowing it! They are the bulky electronic part of old television sets. Thomson used the
cathode ray tube with a magnet and discovered that the green beam it produced was made up of
negatively charged material. He performed many experiments and found that the mass of one of these
particles was almost 2,000 times lighter than a hydrogen atom. From this he decided that these particles
must have come from somewhere within the atom and that Dalton was incorrect in stating that atoms
cannot be divided into smaller pieces. Thomson went one step further and determined that these
negatively charged electrons needed something positive to balance them out. So, he determined that
they were surrounded by positively-charged material. This became known as the 'plum pudding' model
of the atom. The negatively charged plums were surrounded by positively charged pudding.

Summary

 Around 1800, the English chemist John Dalton reintroduced the idea of the atom, which was
first introduced by the ancient Greek philosopher named Democritus.

 Dalton did many experiments with gases and compounds that provided evidence for the
existence of atoms.

 Dalton developed an atomic theory that is still mostly accepted today. It is one of the most
important theories in all of science.

 Dalton thought individual atoms were solid, hard spheres, so he modeled them with wooden
balls.