![]() ![]() However, some particles were reflected or scattered, which goes directly against Thompson's theory, resulting in a new atomic theory - the Rutherford model. Most of the particles went straight through the foil, as predicted by the plum pudding model. In this experiment, Rutherford aimed a ray of radioactive alpha particles at a thin gold foil. This model was later tested by Ernest Rutherford, who performed the gold foil experiment. An analogous example would be a muffin with blueberries, for example, where the berries are the negatively charged particles and the muffin is the positively charged space. This final piece was given the name of atomos, which translates to “indivisible”, and later down the line was adapted into the “atom” we know today.īased on Democritus' ideas and Antoine Lavoisier's law of conservation of mass, at the beginning of the 19 th century a British chemist named John Dalton further developed the atomic theory. He hypothesized that repeatedly cutting an object in half will eventually lead to a fundamental, indivisible fragment of said object. The earliest records of humans speculating about the fundamental makeup of the world come from Ancient Greece, where the philosopher Democritus developed the basis for the atomic theory around 430 BCE. The nuclear shell model, describing the distribution of nucleons in shells with different energy levels. The Bohr model, describing the atom as a small nucleus surrounded by orbiting electrons.ĭiscovery of the neutral particle - neutron. The structure of the atom - small, positively charged nucleus in the middle surrounded by mostly empty space. Discovery of negatively charged particles - electrons.ĭiscovery of p olonium and r adium, which are strongly radioactive elements. ![]() Theory about indivisible fragments "atomos" making up all matter.Ītomic theory, stating that all matter is made up of indivisible atoms, which differ in size and mass depending on the chemical element.ĭiscovery of positively charged particles - protons. A more in-depth breakdown of some of the major discoveries can be found later in the article. The full timeline of discoveries made in connection to the atom is compiled in the table below. In this article, we'll look at the history of discovering atoms and understanding their structure. ![]() Ancient Greeks had thought of this same principle and prompted the discovery and study of atoms. Or so they thought, as beyond atoms there are electrons, fermions and bosons, with quarks remaining the smallest things as far as we know. Over time, scientists found ways to continue the process of splitting things in half, far beyond our visible eye, and at last reached the fundamental building blocks of matter. Just to put it in perspective, a sheet of paper is roughly a million atoms thick. However, even then, we'd be far from reaching the final split, as this definition of "small" refers to a macroscopic scale. What would happen if we took a piece of paper and repeatedly cut it in half? Eventually, it would become impossible to continue with regular tools such as scissors, as the piece would simply be too small. ![]()
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