TOPIC 2

ATOMIC STRUCTURE
2.1
THE NUCLEAR ATOM

By: Merinda Sautel

Alameda Int’l Jr/Sr High School
Lakewood, CO
msautel@jeffco.k12.co.us
 ESSENTIAL IDEA
The mass of an atom is concentrated in
its minute, positively charged nucleus.
NATURE OF SCIENCE (1.8)
Evidence and improvements in instrumentation - alpha
particles were used in the development of the nuclear
model of the atom that was first proposed by Rutherford.
NATURE OF SCIENCE (2.3)
Paradigm shifts – the subatomic particle theory of matter
represents a paradigm shift in science that occurred in the
late 1800s.
 INTERNATIONAL-
MINDEDNESS
Isotope enrichment uses physical
properties to separate isotopes of
uranium and is employed in many
countries as part of nuclear energy and
weaponry programs.
 THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE
Richard Feynman: “If all of scientific knowledge
were to be destroyed and only one sentence
passed on to the next generation, I believe it is
that all things are made of atoms.” Are the
models and theories which scientists create
accurate descriptions of the natural world, or
are they primarily useful interpretations for
prediction, explanation and control of the
natural world?
No subatomic particle can be or will be directly
observed. Which ways of knowing do we use to
interpret indirect evidence, gained through the
use of technology?
 UNDERSTANDINGS/KEY IDEA
2.1.A
• Atoms contain a positively
charged dense nucleus
composed of protons and
neutrons (nucleons).
 UNDERSTANDINGS/KEY IDEA
2.1.B
• Negatively charged electrons
occupy the space outside the
nucleus.
 What do you mean by
‘atom’?
• Comes from the Greek
word ‘atoma’ meaning ‘
not to be able to be cut’
• Protons – found in nucleus
• Neutrons – found in nucleus
• Electrons – surround the
nucleus in energy levels
• Element – substance that cannot
be broken down into simpler
substances by a chemical
reaction.
• Atom – smallest particle (species)
of an element that retains the
properties of that element.
• Compound – the chemical
combination of two or more
elements
 MODELS OF THE ATOM
• John Dalton – Dalton’s atomic theory
• JJ Thomson – plum pudding model and
discovered the electron
• Ernest Rutherford – gold foil experiment
and discovered the proton
• Niels Bohr – solar system model where
the electrons orbit the nucleus
• Quantum Mechanical Model – modern
theory where electrons exist in cloud
shapes or “orbitals”
 DALTON’S ATOMIC THEORY
1. All elements are composed of atoms.
2. Each element has atoms that are different from the
atoms of any other element.
3. Atoms cannot be subdivided, created or destroyed.
4. Atoms of different elements combine in simple ratios
to form chemical compounds.
5. One type of atom cannot be changed into another type
of atom by a chemical reaction.
 MODERN ATOMIC THEORY

• Not all aspects of Dalton’s theory proved to be correct.

• Atoms can be subdivided.
• Atoms can have different masses (isotopes).

• Important parts that are still relevant:

• All matter is composed of atoms.
• Atoms of one element differ in properties from those of
every other element.
 JJ THOMSON’S MODEL
PLUM PUDDING MODEL
• Discovered the electron with its negative
charge
• Adapted the Dalton model to display negative
electrons suspended in a positive “fluid”

Looks like a chocolate

Positive gooey stuff
chip cookie!

Negative electron, Also called the “Plum

held in place Pudding” model.
 RUTHERFORD’S MODEL

• Discovered the positively charged, dense nucleus

• Contained most of the mass of the atom
• Electrons surrounded the central nucleus
• Most of the atom was empty space

Positive nucleus

Negative electrons

Empty space
 There’s a problem with the
Rutherford Model…
• What do positive and negative charges
do?
• They attract to each other!
• So, in this model, why don’t the e- just
move into the nucleus?
 BOHR’S MODEL
Neils Bohr had a possible
solution…
• Instead of the electrons just hanging out
around the nucleus (which would lead
them to crash into it)…
• Maybe the electrons had energy, and
maybe they “orbited” the nucleus like
planets orbit the Sun!
• Bohr came up with the idea that the size
of an electron’s orbit was related to how
much energy the electron had.
• the energy level of an electron would
determine how far away from the nucleus
the electron would be.
 Energy Levels

• Energy levels are like the steps on a

ladder:
• You can’t stand between the steps on a
ladder, and electrons cannot hang out
between energy levels.
• Number the energy levels: n = 1, 2, 3, 4, …
 Energy Levels
• Energy levels are n=5
different from the

Increasing Energy!
n=4
steps on a ladder n=3
because they are
NOT evenly n=2
spaced!
n=1
(lowest energy an
e- can have)

Nucleus
(ground floor)
Nice, normal ladder Energy level ladder
 Quantum Mechanical
Model
• Now, we know that electrons do not follow
in specific paths around the nucleus
• Instead, we currently believe that they pop in
and out of existence, so fast it’s crazy.
• Like camera flashes going off when a superstar
walks in!

• Quantum Mechanics is used to explain

this crazy behavior
• It’s based on probabilities (chances) that
something will be true.
 QUANTUM MECHANICAL MODEL
• Quantum Mechanics uses a “cloud” model to
describe where the electron is likely to be
found.
• These clouds take on particular shapes based
on where an electron with a specific energy is
most likely to be found.

There is a 90% chance that

the electron is somewhere
in here.
Quantum Mechanical Model -
Orbitals
• Quantum Mechanics keeps the idea of
energy levels – these are actually the
rows on the periodic table.
• It also adds sublevels, known as “atomic
orbitals”
• These orbitals are referred to as s, p, d, f
• The shapes of atomic orbitals depend on the
energy levels.
 APPLICATION/SKILLS

• Be able to use the nuclear

symbol AZX to deduce the
number of protons, neutrons
and electrons in atoms and
ions.
• Atomic number – number of protons in
the nucleus
• Mass number – number of protons plus
neutrons in an atom
• Isotope – atoms with the same number
of protons but different numbers of
neutrons (in other words different mass
numbers)
 SHORTHAND
NOTATION
MASS NUMBER (A) = PROTONS + NEUTRONS

A
Z X
ATOMIC NUMBER (Z) = PROTONS
• Ion – atom that has lost or gained an
electron
• Cation – positive ion formed by the loss
of one or more electrons
• Anion – negative ion formed by the gain
of one or more electrons
• Given shorthand notation, isotopic information
or an ion, you should be able to figure out how
many protons, neutrons and electrons are
present.
• Remember the proton number identifies the
element.
• To be neutral, electrons and protons must
equal.
• If you have an ion, your electrons will be
either more or less than the protons
depending upon the charge.
 ISOTOPE SYMBOLS
• Chlorine exists as 2 isotopes: 35Cl and 37Cl
• These can also be written as chlorine-35 and
chlorine-37.
• The difference is the number of neutrons.
 EXAMPLES

• 1. Chlorine-35 has 17p, 17e, and 18n

• 2. Al3+ has 13p, 10e and 14n
• 3. F- has 9p, 10e, and 10n
 GUIDANCE

• Relative masses and charges

of the subatomic particles
should be known. The mass of
the electron can be considered
negligible.
Masses and charges of sub-atomic
particles
RELATIVE RELATIVE
PARTICLE MASS CHARGE

PROTON 1 +1

ELECTRON 0.0005 -1

NEUTRON 1 0
 UNDERSTANDINGS/KEY IDEA
2.1.C
• The mass spectrometer is
used to determine the relative
atomic mass of an element
from its isotopic composition.
 THE MASS
SPECTROMETER
• The mass spectrometer is used to
measure the masses of different
isotopes and their relative abundance.
• It has 5 basic operations.
•
 MASS SPECTRA

• The results of the mass spectrometer

are presented in the form of a mass
spectrum.

The mass spectra for

Molybdenum looks like this.
There are 7 isotopes shown
with their % abundance.
 RELATIVE ATOMIC
MASS
• The relative atomic mass (Ar) of an
element is the average mass of an atom
of the element taking into account all its
isotopes and their relative abundance.
• This is why the atomic mass is not a
whole number.
 APPLICATION/SKILLS

• Be able to calculate non-

integer relative atomic masses
and abundance of isotopes
from given data, including
mass spectra.
• The masses of atoms of all elements actually
range from 1x10-24 to 1x10-22g.
• These numbers are difficult to manage so we
use relative values.
• To use relative values, a standard has to be
agreed upon.
• The carbon-12 isotope was chosen as the
standard in 1961 and was given the relative
mass of 12.000 exactly.
• The masses of all other elements are
measured relative to 12 C.
 EXAMPLE 1

• What is the relative atomic mass of

chlorine if it has two isotopes with the
following abundances: 35Cl at 75% and
37Cl at 25%?

• Multiply the isotope mass by the abundance

and add them together.
• (35 x .75) + (37 x .25) = 35.5amu
 EXAMPLE 2

• Boron exists in 2 isotopic forms, 10B and

11B. Use your periodic table to find the
abundances of the two isotopes.
• You must recognize that the atomic mass for
Boron is 10.81 so it should make sense to
you that more of 11B exists since 11 is closer
to 10.81 than 10 is.
• Let x atoms be 10B, therefore 11B would be 1 – x.
• Remember you have to multiply the isotope mass by
the abundance to get total mass.
• 10x + 11(1-x) = 10.81
10x + 11 – 11x = 10.81
11 – x = 10.81
11-10.81 = x
.19 = x
• So the abundances are 10B = 19.00% and
11 B = 81.00%
 EXAMPLE 3

• Determine the average atomic mass of the

following element from the mass spec data.
• .813(10) + .187(11) =
10.19 amu

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• Compare the properties of the isotopes
of an element.
• Isotopes show the same chemical
properties as their parent element since
neutrons do not affect how they react.
• Isotopes with more neutrons are heavier
and move more slowly at a given
temperature. This can be used as a
means to separate them.
• The difference in neutrons does affect
physical properties like boiling and
melting points, mass, density and rate of
diffusion for gases.
• Remember a physical property is
something that can be measured
without changing the chemical
composition of the substance.
 Citations
International Baccalaureate Organization. Chemistry
Guide, First assessment 2016. Updated 2015.

Brown, Catrin, and Mike Ford. Higher Level Chemistry.

2nd ed. N.p.: Pearson Baccalaureate, 2014. Print.
ISBN 978 1 447 95975 5
eBook 978 1 447 95976 2

Most of the information found in this power point comes

directly from this textbook.

The power point has been made to directly complement

the Higher Level Chemistry textbook by Brown and Ford
and is used for direct instructional purposes only.