Atomic Structure

Learning Objectives
• To describe some important features of
subatomic particles
• To learn about the terms isotope, atomic
number, and mass number
• To understand the use of the symbol to
describe a given atom
• To identify the atomic and mass number of an
element
• To give the number of protons or electrons in
an element
• To calculate the number of neutrons in an
element
 How heavy is an atom?

A single grain of sand contains millions of atoms of

silicon and oxygen.

O millions of these atoms

Si join to form each tiny grain
O of sand

Each atom must therefore have an

extremely small mass.
Relative atomic mass
Atoms are so small that their mass is not measured
in grams but in atomic mass units.

The atoms of each type of element have a relative

atomic mass (RAM).

The element carbon is the atom that the mass of all

other atoms is compared to. Carbon has a RAM of
12.
C Relative atomic mass = 12
Relative atomic mass
Atoms are so small that their mass is not measured
in grams but in atomic mass units.

The atoms of each type of element have a relative

atomic mass (RAM).

The element carbon is the atom that the mass of all

other atoms is compared to. Carbon has a RAM of
12.
C Relative atomic mass = 12
Relative atomic mass - Examples
The lightest atom is hydrogen. It has 1⁄12 the mass of carbon and so
has a RAM of 1.
12 atoms x 1 = 1 atom x 12
H H
H H HH
H
C
H H HH H
HHH H
H
H H
HH H
H H

Magnesium is twice as heavy as carbon. It has a RAM of 24.

1 atom x 24 = 2 atoms x 12
Mg C C
Mg
Even smaller particles
For some time people thought that atoms were the
smallest particles and could not be broken into
anything smaller.
Scientists now know that atoms are actually made
from even smaller subatomic particles. There are
three types:

proton

neutron

electron
 Where are subatomic particles found?

Protons, neutrons and electrons are NOT evenly distributed in

an atom.
The protons and neutrons exist
in a dense core at the centre of
the atom. This is called the
nucleus.
The electrons are spread
out around the edge of
the atom. They orbit the
nucleus in layers called
shells.
 The atom

nucleus electron

neutron proton
Properties of subatomic particles
There are two properties of subatomic particles that
are especially important:
1. Mass
2. Electrical charge

Particle Mass Charge

proton 1 +1
neutron 1 0
electron almost 0 -1

The atoms of an element contain equal numbers of protons

and electrons and so have no overall charge.
How many protons?
The atoms of any particular element always contain the same
number of protons. For example:

 hydrogen atoms always contain 1 proton;

 carbon atoms always contain 6 protons;
 magnesium atoms always contain 12 protons,

The number of protons in an atom is

known as its atomic number
or proton number.

It is the smaller of the two numbers shown

in most periodic tables.
 What’s the atomic number?
What are the atomic numbers of these elements?
sodium iron tin fluorine

11 26 50 9
 More about atomic number
Each element has a definite and fixed number of
protons. If the number of protons changes, then the
atom becomes a different element.
Changes in the number of particles in the nucleus
(protons or neutrons) is very rare. It only takes place
in nuclear processes such as:
 radioactive decay;
 nuclear bombs;
 nuclear reactors.
Mass number
Electrons have a mass of almost zero, which means that the
mass of each atom results almost entirely from the number of
protons and neutrons in the nucleus.
The sum of the protons and neutrons
in an atom’s nucleus is the mass
number. It is the larger of the two
numbers shown in most periodic
tables.
Atom Protons Neutrons Mass number
hydrogen 1 0 1
lithium 3 4 7
aluminium 13 14 27
 What’s the mass number?
Mass number = number of protons + number of neutrons
What is the mass number of these atoms?

Atom Protons Neutrons Mass number

helium 2 2 4
copper 29 35 64
cobalt 27 32 59
iodine 53 74 127
germanium 32 41 73
 How many neutrons?
Number of neutrons = mass number - number of protons
= mass number - atomic number
How many neutrons are there in these atoms?
Mass Atomic Number of
Atom
number number neutrons
helium 4 2 2
fluorine 19 9 10
strontium 88 38 50
zirconium 91 40 51
uranium 238 92 146
Building a nucleus
REVIEW

Which is the bigger number: the Atomic mass number

atomic mass number or the
atomic number?
Define atomic mass number The number of protons + number of
neutrons in an atom of that element
Define atomic number The number of protons in an atom of
that element
How do you calculate the number Use the atomic number
of protons for an element?
How do you calculate the number Use the atomic number
of electrons for an element?
How do you calculate the number Atomic mass number - atomic number
of neutrons for an element?
Exit ticket:

1. Name the 3 sub-atomic particles that make up an

atom.
2. How can you find out the number of protons in the
atom of an element?
3. How can you find out the number of neutrons in the
atom of an element?
4. What do we call the centre of an atom? Which
subatomic particles are located there?
Exit ticket – self assess

1. Name the 3 sub-atomic particles that make up an atom

protons, neutrons and electrons
2. How can you find out the number of protons in the atom
of an element? Find the atomic number
3. How can you find out the number of neutrons in the
atom of an element? Atomic mass number – atomic
number
4. What do we call the centre of an atom? Which
subatomic particles are located there? The nucleus. It
contains protons and neutrons