Why is it that the electron is kept out of the nucleus of the atom. Please don't tell me it is not an allowed energy level becasue i know that. What keeps is from falling to the nucleus and cancelling the positive charge... the electron is minus and the nucleus is plus --so ?? I don't get it .. BTW this is a college chem course so if you have a good answer i really appreciate it.
2007-04-25 16:54:37 · 9 answers · asked by rasdchina 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
You're not going to like this answer but .....
The electron is not a particle in orbit around the nucleus so does not have to behave like one.
Just as it is mathematically convenient to sometimes think of light as a wave and other times as a particle, the electron also has the properties of both.
Energy levels are not orbits though it can be convenient to treat them as such.
2007-04-26 07:52:06 · answer #1 · answered by Dr Ditto 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The proton has a positive charge, the electron has a negative charge, and the neutron has no charge. The Neutron and proton combine to form the nucleus of the atom. Since the neutron has no charge, the nucleus will have a net positive charge.
Law of charges:
The law of charges states that opposite charges attract and like charges repel. For example, two objects that contain opposite charge are attracted to each other. The two positively charged objects and two negatively charged units repel each other. The reason for this is that lines of force can never cross each other. The outward-going lines of force of a positively charged object combine with the inward-going lines of force of a negatively charged object. This combining produces an attraction between the two objects. If the two objects with like charges come close to each other, the lines of force repel. Since the nucleus has a net positive charge and the electron has a negative charge, the electron is attracted to the nucleus.
Because the nucleus of an atom is formed from the combination of protons and neutrons, one might ask why the protons of the nucleus do not repel each other since they all have the same charge. Two theories attempt to explain this. The first asserts that the force of gravity holds the protons and neutron together. Neutrons, like protons, are extremely massive particles. Their combined mass produces, the gravitational force necessary to overcome the repelling force of the positive charges. The second explanation involves a theoretical particle called gluon. A gluon is a subatomic particle that acts as a bonding agent that not only holds quarks together, but also holds the protons and neutrons together.
But I digress, back to electrons!
If protons and electrons are treated purely as particles, then the reason electrons are where they are (shell/level) is because of the energy they possess.
Imagine the electrons are spinning around the nucleus (protons and neutrons). The faster the electrons travel, the more likely that the electrons may escape (this is not scientifically precise - just trying to give a pictorial image for you).
Two forces might be considered in a classical, non-quantum, physics - electrostatic attraction (which keeps the particles together by attraction) and the centripetal force (people think it is called centrifugal force) "pushing the electrons away from the nucleus" The protons and electrons "balance each other out". Think of the electron as being a ball on the end of a string being spun around - too much energy and the string breaks....
Dr. H
2007-04-25 17:07:37 · answer #2 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The planetary orbit analogy has no longer been the accepted model for quite some time now. The current model has electrons travelling more or less at random. They can enter the nucleus in this model. A neutron is created when an electron is captured by a proton. A neutron can also eject an electron, thus becoming a proton.
2016-05-18 23:53:12 · answer #3 · answered by linnie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
negatively charged electrons are revolving around the nucleus. the path of the electron is circular. the force of the attraction between the nucleus and the electron is equal to centrifugal force of the moving electron
2016-05-10 20:19:12 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I guess it is the centripetal force of the electron and moreover
the electron is moving around the nucleus with a certain speed - which is obviously in a very good balance with the other forces.
2007-04-25 20:39:45 · answer #5 · answered by schnuckiputzlmäusltiger 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The same thing that keeps the moon from falling into the earth and the earth from falling into the sun. The electrons are in stable orbit around the nucleus.
But sometimes it does happen. It's called electron capture. The electron collides with a proton, forming a neutron and emitting a neutrino.
2007-04-25 18:11:03 · answer #6 · answered by Frank N 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
1
2017-02-20 04:36:02 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
electro static repulsion, and centrifical force, keep the electron from entering the nucleus.
2007-04-25 17:13:21 · answer #8 · answered by chaseselby 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
from where did the electron get that centripetal force and why
2014-04-17 08:16:34 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋