No Plagiarism Please 10. Use the pHet simulation found on page 2 in lesson 4 of unit 2 to create a stable isotope of carbon. What are the number of protons, neutrons and electrons that you added to the model? Where are the protons and neutrons found in the atom?
Atomic Structure
The basic structure of an atom is defined as the component-level of atomic structure of an atom. Precisely speaking an atom consists of three major subatomic particles which are protons, neutrons, and electrons. Many theories have been stated for explaining the structure of an atom.
Shape of the D Orbital
Shapes of orbitals are an approximate representation of boundaries in space for finding electrons occupied in that respective orbital. D orbitals are known to have a clover leaf shape or dumbbell inside where electrons can be found.
- Protons are positively charged particles that lie in the center, or nucleus of the atom.
- Neutrons are neutrally charged particles that lie in the atomic nucleus with the protons.
- Electrons are negatively charged particles which lie on the outside of the atom.
What defines a particular element is the number of protons in its nucleus.
Hydrogen atoms have one proton, helium atoms have two protons, and so on. Different atoms of an element may contain different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei. For example, there are atoms of hydrogen that have one neutron and some that have two neutrons.
Protons and neutrons are similar in mass to each other but are much heavier than electrons. The mass number of a particular atom is the total number of protons and neutrons the atom contains. So, a hydrogen atom with a single proton has a mass number of 1 and is named hydrogen-1. A hydrogen atom with 1 proton and 1 neutron has a mass number of 2 and is named hydrogen-2.
To have a neutral atom, the same number of protons and electrons must be present. The positive and negatively charged particles counteract each other to remain neutral. A stable atom most likely also has the same number of neutrons. The number of neutrons do not affect the overall charge of the atom
because neutrons have no charge.
Two atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons are called different
Whether an atomic nucleus is stable or unstable depends on the relative numbers of protons and neutrons in its nucleus. The exact ratio that determines stability varies from element to element. An unstable nucleus is likely to undergo decay, meaning that it will give off particles and energy. This sometimes causes the atom to change into an atom of a different element.
The amount of positive charge carried by a single proton is equal in magnitude to the amount of negative charge carried by a single electron. As stated above, an atom is neutrally charged if the number of protons equals the number of electrons. If the numbers are unequal, the atom will have a net charge and is called an ion.
In Image One (The hydrogen atom on the left has one proton and one electron. The helium atom on the right has two protons, two neutrons, and two electrons.)
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