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Atomic Structure Models

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Atomic Structure Models

Uploaded by

om.kumar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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THEORIES OF ATOMIC STRUCTURE

DEMOCRITUS THEORY
Highlights
Democritus was an ancient Greek philosopher, and one of the first atheists in history. Democritus (and his teacher
Leucippus), is credited with the development of the atomic theory. Using the idea that that if a stone was divided in
half, the two halves would have essentially the same properties as the whole. Therefore, he reasoned that if the stone
were to be continually cut into smaller and smaller pieces then; at some point, there would be a piece which would be
so small as to be indivisible. He called these small pieces of matter "atomos" meaning indivisible. Democritus,
theorized that atoms were specific to the material which they composed.
Failure
Democritus theory was unable to give ideas regarding changes in material (i.e., chemical reactions) and was it was
rejected by one of the most influential philosophers of Ancient Greece- Aristotle; and the atomic theory was ignored
for nearly 2,000 years.
DALTON'S ATOMIC THEORY (1803)
Highlights
• All matter consists of tiny particles called atoms.
• Atoms are tiny, solid spheres which are in continuous motion.
• Atoms are indestructible and unchangeable.
• Elements are characterized by the weight of their atoms.
• Atoms of different elements are different from each other.
• In chemical reactions, atoms combine in small, whole-number ratios. (Law of Definite Proportion)
Failure
Approximately fifty years after John Dalton's proposal was rejected based on two evidences:
1. Michael Faraday’s observation regarding role of electrical forces in joining of atoms in compounds. (1830)
2. Sir William Crookes discovery of cathode ray –the flow of electrically charged particles from one of rod to
another held in a sealed tube containing gas when electricity was passed. (1879)
3. Discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Roentgen while experimenting with cathode rays, Roentgen discovered that
if he directed these rays toward a paper plate coated with barium platinocyanide, the plate became fluorescent.
(1895)
4. Discovery of radioactivity in which radiations (alpha, beta and gamma rays) are emitted from elements
spontaneously resulting in their decomposition into simpler elements. (1896)
J. J. THOMSON'S ATOMIC THEORY (1897)
Highlights
• Atom is made up of negative electrons that float in a “soup” of positive charge, much like raisins in a fruit
cake
• The amount of positive and negative charge in an atom is exactly same and as such an atom is electrically
neutral.
• The electrons were thought to be positioned throughout the atom in rotating rings.
• In this model the atom was also sometimes described to have a “cloud” of positive charge.
• Distribution of whatever material exist in atom is uniform.
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J. J. Thomson's Picture of Atom


Failure
In 1911, Ernest Rutherford, a former student of J.J. Thomson, proved Thomson's structure incorrect. Rutherford with
the assistance of Ernest Marsden and Hans Geiger performed a series of experiments using alpha particles. Rutherford
aimed alpha particles at solid substances such as gold foil and recorded the location of the alpha particle "strikes" on
a fluorescent screen as they passed through the foil. To the experimenters’ amazement, although most of the alpha
particles passed unaffected through the gold foil as expected, a small number of particles were deflected at an angle,
and a few reflected straight back. Rutherford concluded that the atom consisted of a small, dense, positively charged
part nucleus in the center of the atom with negatively charged electrons surrounding it i.e., there are two separate
entities in an atom. One of these are negatively charged electron and the other a positively charged central core.

Geiger-Marsden Set-up
RUTHERFORD'S ATOMIC THEORY
Highlights
• The positively charged particles and most of the mass of an atom was concentrated in an extremely small
volume. Rutherford called this region of the atom as a nucleus.
• The negatively charged electrons surround the nucleus of an atom.
• Electrons surrounding the nucleus revolve around it with very high speed in circular paths. He named these
circular paths as orbits.
• Electrons being negatively charged and nucleus being a densely concentrated mass of positively charged
particles are held together by a strong electrostatic force of attraction.

Rutherford’s Picture of Atom


Failure
• Rutherford proposed that the electrons revolve around the nucleus in fixed paths called orbits. According to
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Maxwell, accelerated charged particles emit electromagnetic radiations and hence an electron revolving
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around the nucleus should emit electromagnetic radiation. This radiation would carry energy from the motion
of the electron which would come at the cost of shrinking of orbits. Ultimately the electrons would collapse
in the nucleus. Calculations have shown that as per Rutherford model an electron would collapse in the
nucleus in less than 10-8 seconds. So Rutherford model was not in accordance with Maxwell’s theory and
could not explain the stability of an atom.
• One of the drawbacks of the Rutherford model was also that he did not say anything about the arrangement
of electrons in an atom which made his theory incomplete.

BOHR'S ATOMIC THEORY (1913)


Highlights
• Electrons are arranged in concentric circular orbits around the nucleus.
• This model is patterned on the solar system and is known as the planetary model.
• Electrons occupy only certain orbits around the nucleus. Those orbits are stable and are called "stationary"
orbits.
• Each orbit has an energy associated with it.
• Energy is absorbed when an electron jumps from a lower orbit to a higher one and energy is emitted when
an electron falls from a higher orbit to a lower orbit.
• The laws of classical mechanics apply to the motion of the electron about the nucleus only when restricted
by a quantum rule. Therefore, his atomic model is called a semi-classical model.
• The energy and frequency of light emitted or absorbed can be calculated by using the difference between the
two orbital energies.

MODIFIED THEORIES & NEW DEVELOPMENTS


SCHRÖDINGER QUANTUM MODEL (1926)
Erwin Schrödinger 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. 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.
DISCOVERY OF NEUTRON
Until 1932, the atom was believed to be composed of a positively charged nucleus surrounded by negatively charged
electrons. In 1932, James Chadwick bombarded beryllium atoms with alpha particles. An unknown radiation was
produced. Chadwick interpreted this radiation as being composed of particles with a neutral electrical charge and the
approximate mass of a proton. This particle became known as the neutron. With the discovery of the neutron, an
adequate model of the atom became available to chemists.
AND THE JOURNEY CONTINUES…
Since 1932, through continued experimentation, many additional particles have been discovered in the atom. Also,
new elements have been created by bombarding existing nuclei with various subatomic particles. The atomic theory
has been further enhanced by the concept that protons and neutrons are made of even smaller units called quarks. The
quarks themselves are in turn made of vibrating strings of energy. The theory of the composition of the atom continues
to be an ongoing and exciting adventure.

Note: USE THIS HANDOUT AS SUPPLEMENT WITH THE


LECTURES ON THE MODELS OF ATOM
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