atomic structure and particle physics Flashcards
plum pudding model of the atom
a model that pictured that atom as a positive sphere of pudding with small negatively charged plums with small negatively charged plums embedded in it
nuclear model of atom
a model that pictures the atom having a very small positively charged nucleus that carries almost all ot the mass of the atom surrounded by the very much smaller, negatively charged electrons
nucleus of atom
the very small, but very dense, positively charged centre of an atom
nucleon
a general term to describe protons and neutron
nucleon number
the total number of neutrons and protons int he nucleus of an atom
neutron number
the number of neutrons in the nucleus of an atom
proton number
the number of protons in the nucleus of an atom
nuclide
a specific combination of protons and neutrons in a nucleus
unified atomic mass unit
one- twelfth of the mass of a carbon - 12 atoms
isotopes
nuclei of the same element with different numbers of neutrons but the same number of protons
ion
an atom that has lost or gained one or more electrons, so that is is electrically charges
strong nuclear force
a fundamental force that acts between particles such as protons and neutrons, but which does not affect particles like electrons
positron
the antiparticle of the electron; it has the same mass as the electron but has a charge +e
β- decay
the emission of an electron as a neutron decays into a proton
β+ decay
the emission of a positron as a proton decays into a neutron