Grade11 Physical Science - Module 1

Southern Maramag Colleges Module 1 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
P2 South Pob., Maramag, Buk. THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATOM

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Name: ________________________________________________ Grade 11 Distribution Date: ______________
Learning Outcomes
After going through this module, you are expected to:
1. Discuss key developments in the concept of the atomic structure; and
2. Give brief explanations of each of the models of atomic structure.
THE STRUCTURE OF ATOM
ACTIVITY 1 Write your answer below.

1. What is atom? ___________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Most atomists like Democritus and advocates of atomic theory believed that the atom was a fundamental,
indestructible, indivisible particle. This is sometimes known as the billiard ball concept of the atom.
ACTIVITY 2
1. Find out why it is called billiard ball concept of the atom. Write your answer on your paper briefly. (3-5
sentences only)
Robert Brown observed, under a microscope, that pollen suspended in water ejected particles that caused a
jittery, irregular motion. This would later be called Brownian motion. Later on in the 20th century, this observation
would be used by Albert Einstein and a French physicist, Jean Perrin, to mathematically and experimentally confirm John
Dalton’s Chemical Atomic Theory. This made the atom an undeniable part of how we thought about the universe. The
atom is no longer debatable, the way it was in the time of the Greeks, the alchemists and Lavoisier.
FOUR ATOMIC MODELS
1. Plum-Pudding Model
Later in 1897, Joseph John Thomson published the idea that electricity was in particles that were part of the atom.
Experimenting with cathode rays, he established the mass and charge properties of these particles. These particles were
named electrons. In 1904, he came up with the plum-pudding model, which was an idea of what the atom looked like
based on his experiments.
He would later conclude that the electron was not the only source of mass in the atom. This implied that the atom
was composed of other particles.
Figure 1. Thomson’s plum-pudding model, a sphere with a uniformly

distributed positive charge and enough embedded electrons to
neutralize the positive charge. A plum pudding is a sort of cake with
raisins embedded in it.
2. Rutherford’s atomic Model

Ernest Rutherford, a student of Thomson’s, who was among
many who studied radioactivity. He concluded that radioactivity
occurred due to changes on a subatomic level, or changes within the
atom itself. In 1902, he worked in Thomson’s laboratory where he
distinguished two kinds of radiation based on their penetrating
power: α (alpha) and β (beta). He studied these types of radiation and noticed, from his experiments, that alpha
particles would sometimes bounce off at a high angle when made to penetrate a very thin gold foil.
In 1911, Rutherford theorized that the model proposed by Thomson did not explain the deflection of alpha particles.
Therefore, he devised his own model with a positive nucleus at the center and electrons revolving like planets at a
distance around it. The incredibly dense nucleus explained the occasional deflection experienced by the alpha particles,
while the amounts of empty space in between explained why most particles were able to pass through.
Rutherford later concluded that the nucleus was composed of positive particles known as protons, which were then
thought to be hydrogen nuclei found in other atoms. He suggested the possibility of finding a composite particle (proton
+ electron) with a negligible electric field that composed the nucleus.
Figure 2. Diagram of the Rutherford atomic model. Physicist Ernest Rutherford

envisioned the atom as like a miniature solar system, with electrons orbiting
around a massive nucleus, and as mostly empty space, with the nucleus occupying
only a very small part of the atom.
3. Bohr model of the atom

Niels Bohr, another scientist in Rutherford’s laboratory. He tackled one of the
big issues with the Rutherford model in 1913. The system proposed by Rutherford
was unstable because, under classical physics, the spinning electrons would tend to
be attracted to the positive nucleus and lose energy until they collapse into the
center. Bohr proposed that the electrons existed only at fixed distances from the
nucleus at set “energy levels,” or quanta. Quanta was first conceptualized mathematically by Max Planck. Bohr also
proposed that the electrons “jumped” between energy levels by absorbing or releasing discrete amounts of energy.
However, the Bohr model of the atom was still unable to explain why atoms bonded in certain ways to form
compounds. For example, carbon formed compounds of CH 4 while oxygen formed H2O.
Figure 3. In the Bohr model of the atom, electrons travel in defined circular
orbits around the nucleus. The orbits are labeled by an integer, the
quantum number n. Electrons can jump from one orbit to another by
emitting or absorbing energy.
4. Quantum Model
The model is based on mathematical equations by several scientists,
including Werner Heisenberg and Ernest Schrödinger.
• Instead of electrons being particles in the model, electrons have

characteristics of both waves and particles.
 Instead of orbits, there were orbitals or regions of space with high probability of finding electrons. These are
sometimes known as electron clouds or electron subshells whose shapes are described by complex wave
equations.
 There is no real “empty space,” but there are regions with a high or low probability of finding an electron. The
quantum model more accurately explains properties of elements such as the way that atoms bond with one
another. However, it made Rutherford’s proposal of composite proton-electron particles unworkable. This is
because the equations would predict that there was a zero probability of electrons being found in the nucleus.
The mass unaccounted for by the protons had to come from another particle entirely.
James Chadwick was a student of Rutherford’s who built on this possibility in 1926. He worked on radiation emitted
by beryllium that took the form of particles heavy enough to displace protons. These particles were as heavy as protons,
but they needed to have a neutral charge that would allow them to smash into the nucleus without being repelled by
electrons or protons. He confirmed their existence by measuring their mass and called them neutrons. He determined
that they were single particles instead of composite ones that Rutherford had hypothesized.
The neutron was able to explain the mass unaccounted for by a system of protons and electrons only. It also
allowed for more far-reaching advancements in nuclear physics and chemistry. It gave an understanding of isotopes and
radioactive decay, and provided the tools to synthesize new elements and radioactive materials. These advancements,
for better or for worse, changed the landscape of science because they gave us the ability to derive large amounts of
energy from splitting the atom (nuclear fission).
ACTIVITY 3
Direction: Using the table below, summarize the four atomic models. Include the relevant concepts, similarities and
differences from other atomic models if there’s any. Write your answer on your paper.
Plum-Pudding /Thomson’s Model Rutherford’s Model
Relevant concepts: Relevant concepts:
Similarities with other models: Similarities with other models:
Differences with other models: Differences with other models:
Bohr’s Model Quantum Model
Relevant concepts: Relevant concepts:
Similarities with other models: Similarities with other models:
Differences with other models: Differences with other models:
ACTIVITY 4
Direction: In your paper, research the following: (Write your answer on your paper)
1. Historical development of the model of atomic theory with contributions from Dalton to Chadwick. Write only
the significant concepts/terms.
2. Quark - Subatomic Particle. Retrieved May 22, 2016 from http:// www.britannica.com/science/quark. After
reading the text, summarize what you read/learned.
ACTIVITY 5 My Reflection
Why is it important to study the structure of the atom? (Write your answer in 5 sentences only)
References:
 Moskowitz, C. (2012, January 26). Wacky Physics: Why Do Particles Have Flavors? Retrieved November 17, 2015
from http:// www.livescience.com/18141-wacky-physics-particle-flavors.html
 Images: Thomson atomic model: structure [art]. (2012). In Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved October
27, 2015 from http://www.britannica.com/ science/Thomson-atomic-model/images-videos/Thomson-atomic-
model-William-Thomson-envisioned-the-atom-as-a/18135
 Rutherford atomic model [art]. (2012). In Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved Oct. 27, 2015 from
http://www.britannica.com/science/ Rutherford-atomic-model/images-videos/Diagram-of-the-Rutherford-
atomic-model/18079 Bohr atomic model: Bohr atom with first Balmer transition [art]. (2012). In Encyclopædia
Britannica Online. Retrieved Nov. 7, 2015 from http:// www.britannica.com/biography/Niels-Bohr/images-
videos/In-the-Bohr-model-of-the-atom-electrons-travel-in/17833
 VCEasy. (2014). Historical development of the model of atomic theory with contributions from Dalton to
Chadwick [infographic]. Retrieved November 10, 2015 from https://vceasy.wordpress.com/2014/02/22/unit-1-
1-2a-historical-development-of-the-model-of-atomic-theory-fromdalton-to-chadwick/
 Rutherford’s Model: http://www.finetuneduniverse.com/atomsandelements.html Retrieved: August 25, 2016
 Bohr’s Model: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bohr-atom-PAR.svg Retrieved: August 25, 2016
Prepared by: Roselle S. Villaquer

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Southern Maramag Colleges Module 1 PHYSICAL SCIENCE

P2 South Pob., Maramag, Buk. THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATOM

THE STRUCTURE OF ATOM

ACTIVITY 1 Write your answer below.

FOUR ATOMIC MODELS

Figure 1. Thomson’s plum-pudding model, a sphere with a uniformly

2. Rutherford’s atomic Model

Figure 2. Diagram of the Rutherford atomic model. Physicist Ernest Rutherford

3. Bohr model of the atom

• Instead of electrons being particles in the model, electrons have

Prepared by: Roselle S. Villaquer

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