ATOM

Electrons form notional shells around the nucleus. These are naturally in a ground
state but can be excited by the absorption of energy from light (photons), magnetic fields,
or interaction with a colliding particle (typically other electrons).
Electrons that populate a shell are said to be in a bound state. The energy necessary
to remove an electron from its shell (taking it to infinity) is called the binding energy. Any
quantity of energy absorbed by the electron in excess of this amount is converted to kinetic
energy according to the conservation of energy. The atom is said to have undergone the
process of ionization.
In the event the electron absorbs a quantity of energy less than the binding energy, it
will transition to an excited state. After a statistically sufficient quantity of time, an
electron in an excited state will undergo a transition to a lower state. The change in
energy between the two energy levels must be accounted for (conservation of energy). In a
neutral atom, the system will emit a photon of the difference in energy. However, if the
excited atom has been previously ionized, in particular if one of its inner shell electrons
has been removed, a phenomenon known as the Auger effect may take place where the
quantity of energy is transferred to one of the bound electrons causing it to go into the
continuum. This allows one to multiply ionize an atom with a single photon.
There are rather strict selection rules as to the electronic configurations that can be
reached by excitation by light—however there are no such rules for excitation by collision
processes.
1. What is the atom?

Atoms are the smallest building blocks of matter and make up everything around us.
2. Parts of the atom

Structure of the Atom

At the center of the atom is the nucleus. The nucleus is made up of the protons and neutrons. The
electrons spin in orbits around the outside of the nucleus.
 The Proton
The proton is a positively charged particle that is located at the center of the atom in the nucleus. The
hydrogen atom is unique in that it only has a single proton and no neutron in its nucleus.
The Electron
The electron is a negatively charged particle that spins around the outside of the nucleus. Electrons spin
so fast around the nucleus, scientists can never be 100% sure where they are located, but scientists can
make estimates of where electrons should be. If there are the same number of electrons and protons in
an atom, then the atom is said to have a neutral charge.

Electrons are attracted to the nucleus by the positive charge of the protons. Electrons are much smaller
than neutrons and protons. About 1800 times smaller!

The Neutron

The neutron doesn't have any charge. The number of neutrons affects the mass and the radioactivity of
the atom.
3. What is the molecules?

Any time two atoms join together, they make a molecule. All the stuff around you is made up of
molecules. This includes you! You are actually made up of trillions and trillions of different types of
molecules.
 Element Molecules
Some molecules are made of one type of element. For example, oxygen exists naturally as molecules
containing two atoms of oxygen (O). We can represent this using the chemical formula O2.

Compound Molecules
Some molecules are made up of different elements. Substances made up of two or more different
elements chemically bonded together are called compounds. Water is a compound that exists as small
molecules. Each molecule of water is made up of two atoms of hydrogen (H) covalently bonded to one
atom of oxygen (O). The chemical formula for water is H2O.

Carbon dioxide has the formula CO2. The chemical formula tells us that a molecule of carbon dioxide
is made up of one atom of carbon (C) and two atoms of oxygen (O).

4. Chemical bonds

Molecules and compounds are held together by forces called chemical bonds. There are two main
types of bonds that hold most compounds together: covalent bonds and ionic bonds. Some compounds
can have both types of bonds.

Both main types of bonds involve electrons. Electrons orbit atoms in shells. These shells want to be
"full" of electrons. When they aren't full, they will try to bond with other atoms to get the right amount
of electrons to fill their shells.

Covalent Bonds - Covalent bonds share electrons between atoms. This happens when it works out for
atoms to share their electrons in order to fill their outer shells.

Ionic Bonds - Ionic bonds form when one electron is donated to another. This happens when one atom
gives up an electron to another in order to form a balance and, therefore, a molecule or compound.
5. Isotopes

About Atoms and Elements

We learned in the atoms and elements sections that each element has its own unique atom
which is made up of a specific number of protons. The number of protons determines the
atomic number of the element. Each atom also has the same number of electrons as protons.

What is an isotope?
Isotopes are atoms that have the same number of protons and electrons, but a different
number of neutrons. Changing the number of neutrons in an atom does not change the
element. Atoms of elements with different numbers of neutrons are called "isotopes" of that
element.

Naming Isotopes

Since neutrons have no electrical charge, changing the number of neutrons does not affect
the chemistry of the element. It does, however, change the mass of the element. Isotopes are
identified by their mass, which is the total number of protons and neutrons.

There are two ways that isotopes are generally written. They both use the mass of the atom
where mass = (number of protons) + (number of neutrons). The first way is to put the
mass as a superscript before the symbol of the element:

4
 He
14
 C
235
 U

The other way is to write out the element and write the mass after a dash next to the
element's name:

 helium-4
 carbon-14
  uranium-238

Hydrogen

Hydrogen is the only element where the isotopes are given specific names. Common
hydrogen, which has zero neutrons, is called protium. Hydrogen with one neutron is called
deuterium and hydrogen with two neutrons is called tritium. See the picture at the top of the
page.

How many isotopes can an element have?

All elements have a number of isotopes. Hydrogen has the fewest number of isotopes with
only three. The elements with the most isotopes are cesium and xenon with 36 known
isotopes.

Stable and Unstable Isotopes

Some isotopes are stable and some are unstable. When an isotope is unstable it will decay
over time and eventually it will turn into another isotope or element. Unstable isotopes are
considered radioactive. Most elements that are found in nature are made up of stable
isotopes. The element with the most stable isotopes is tin which has ten different stable
isotopes.

Interesting Facts about Isotopes

 Many elements only exist in an unstable or radioactive form.

 All non-natural or man-made elements are radioactive isotopes.
 Heavier isotopes tend to react more slowly than lighter isotopes of the same element.
 Deuterium (the hydrogen isotope with one neutron) can form water with oxygen. This is
called "heavy water" as deuterium has twice the mass of normal hydrogen (protium).
 There are 254 known stable isotopes and 80 elements which have at least one stable
isotope.
 Twenty-six elements only have one stable isotope. These elements are called
monoisotopic.