This is a Lithium Atom, click on its different parts to learn more.
With its negative charge, the electron is what allows so much complexity inside the atom. Let's learn more about it!
The electrons are found in the well-named electron cloud. Here is where the orbital are. Contrary to popular belief, the electron orbitals are somewhere where the electrons reside, not the actual trajectory of the electrons. It's like a bush where there's a berry, you don't know where the berry is just that's in the bush.
The Electron orbitals are inside the previously mentioned cloud. They each have a specific shape, allowing for more complexity as the levels stack on. These are what allow us to have so many complex molecules and allow the beautiful symphony that is the periodic table.
Electron Configuration is the order in which electrons are arranged depending on the strength of their charge and attraction. It uses the previously mentioned orbitals to determine the order and importance of where the placement should be.
With its positive charge, the proton was one of the first parts of the atom to be discovered. Let's learn more about it!
Discovered in 1911 by Ernest Rutherford, the proton was the beginning of the modern-day atomic theory. In his now-famous experiment, he was able to shoot radioactive alpha particles into a gold foil and measure the deflection. This allowed him to detect the presence of the proton.
An element's atomic number is determined by the number of protons that that element posses. This also means, that since the atom is electromagnetically neutral, the positive charge of the proton is balanced out by the negative charge with the same number of electrons.
Although the modern atomic theory wasn't developed for another 2,500 years, the first to visualize the atom as a single particle were Leucippus and Democritus Way back in Ancient Greece. These first ideas were the very first atomic model.
With its Neutral charge, the neutron allows us to be able to truly change and adapt to each atom. Let's learn more about it!
With its neutral charge, it doesn't necessarily do much to change the chemical properties of an atom. What the neutron does best is make it so that however many positively charged protons can all fit nicely inside the nucleus without tearing itself apart.
Due to its aforementioned neutralizing ability, it allows you to have isotopes, or a different variety of an element without changing its proton or electron count. This is what allows us to have more than one type of an element while still being the same element.
Although most people think that protons, neutrons, and electrons are the smallest particles, the smallest are actually what make up the proton and neutron. The quarks. The proton and neutron are made up of hundreds of possible quarks, but only require 3, known as the valance quarks.
