Ok, first off, this is for biology class...not chemistry...which is kind of weird to begin with (I thought it fit better in the chem category). I have to create a 3-D Bohr model of the atom carbon. One of the requirements is that protons, neutrons, and electrons are proportional. I thought that electrons were just a cloud/shells anyway, but I guess not according to this teacher...should I make the protons, neutrons, and electrons the same size, or different sizes? I have only seen them the same size...but I am only in high school...btw, this teacher is really...*cough* annoying, unreliable, confusing, dyslexic (no offense...) *cough* so I have trouble with her instructions sometimes...if they are the same size, please just say so. If not, say what sizes they should be, please! Thanks. (Sorry about the lengthy details.)
2007-09-22 11:19:27 · 6 answers · asked by mlygsby 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
Well done!
Electrons do indeed spread out to what quantum physicists call a 'probability cloud' so drawing one seems silly. Electrons aren't like little moons orbiting a planet so you're ahead of your teacher from the sound of it. They're far tinier than protons and neutrons which form the nucleus of an atom. I think electrons are about a 1000th of the size of a proton, I'd have to refresh my memory. Apparently electrons are too small to measure but the proton has one thousand, eight hundred and thirty six times the mass of the electron - I guess you could assume it was that much bigger...
Tell her its silly to draw a picture of something that is smaller than the wavelength of light. That'll shut her up.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atom
If you're actually interested in this stuff I recommend you look up a copy of 'in search of schrodinger's cat' which I promise you will enjoy.
Kind regards
2007-09-22 11:44:28 · answer #1 · answered by Leviathan 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
With all due respect to the biologists their ball and stick models are very crude but just humour your teacher and make the electron orange size while the proton and neutron are basketball size as an example of the proportions she might be expecting to see. In reality the electron is much smaller than the neutron and proton.
2007-09-22 13:32:45 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Electrons are very small, they are considered to have no mass. Size is about 1/1837 of a proton.
Protons and neutrons are about the same size. The neutron is about 1/1837 larger, as it is thought to be a proton and electron together.
The electrons are found in clouds a certain distance from the nucleus in energy levels.always moving. So the cloud is a probability of where they might be.
2007-09-22 11:49:18 · answer #3 · answered by science teacher 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
arent protons and neutrons IN electrons or something??
2016-05-21 01:32:29 · answer #4 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
neutrons and protrons are basically the same size, however electrons are smaller
2007-09-22 11:31:12 · answer #5 · answered by Komodork 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no
2007-09-22 11:27:16 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋