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What causes some of the alpha particles to bounce straight back from the gold foil?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
Alpha particles are composed of two neutrons and two protons, so they have a positive charge. When the alpha particles bounced straight back from the gold foil, this indicated that they had hit a particle of like charge, in other words a positively charged particle in the gold foil, which repelled the alpha particle.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
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In Rutherfords gold foil experiment shown in Figure 4-1 alpha particles that bounce straight back from the foil have struck in the gold atoms?
No, they struck the nucleus of the atom. Since the alpha particles are positively charged and nucleus is positively charged as well, they repelled each other and alpha particles are repelled back
What happened to the alpha particles as they hit the gold foil?
They stop.
How did Rutherford know an atom was mostly empty pace?
Most of his test particles (alpha particles) when straight through.
Why does an alpha particle change direction when it hits gold foil?
Most alpha particles (a pair of protons and a pair of neutrons tied together by nuclear bonds - a helium nucleus) will pass right through the foil. But some will be deflected. That's because those alpha particles have electrostatically interacted with a gold atom nucleus. The gold nucleus is positively charged, and so is the alpha particle. And positive charges don't like each other. The interaction of the charges causes the alpha particles to be deflected if they approach the nucleus. If the alpha particle is on a trajectory that will take it very near (or right at) the nucleus, it will undergo proportionally more deflection, and could actually bounce back the way it came. (The technical term for this interaction is scattering.) This type of early experiment helped investigators determine that the atom had most of its mass concentrated in a nucleus. Before that, it was suspected that the particles that made up the atom were distributed within it in a "general" way. If that was true, the all the alpha particles that were shot at the foil would pass through and none would be deflected. But in the experiment, some were. Why? There must be something inside there that is big and bad and caused the alpha particles to bounce off of it. Oooo, snap! A nuclear atom with mass concentrated in the middle!
What gives off alpha particles?
Alpha particles are a type of particle of radiation that is emmited by certain radioactive materials. The materials that give off Alpha particles are called ''Alpha emitters.''
When Rutherford performed his metal foil experiment did the alpha particles pass straight through the foil or bounce back?
The alpha particles beam is scattered.
What part of a atom causes particles to bounce back?
The heavy, dense nucleus of the atom caused the alpha particles to bounce back in Rutherford's experiment.
In Rutherford's gold experiment particles in dense atomic nuclei caused some alpha particles to bounce straight back from the gold foil?
positive
In Rutherford's gold foil experiment particles in dense atomic nuclei caused some alpha particles to bounce straight back from the gold foil.?
positive
In Rutherfords gold foil experiment particles in dense atomic nuclei caused some alpha particles to bounce straight back from the gold foil.?
positive
What did Rutherford say about the small number of particles that bounced straight back?
Rutherford fired alpha particles at a sheet of atoms in order to determine the atomic structure. The alpha particle is positively charged. Those particles that bounce straight back are the ones that hit the nucleus of the atom and were repelled by the nucleus's positive charge.
What part of the atoms caused the particles to bounce?
The heavy, dense nucleus of the atom caused the alpha particles to bounce back in Rutherford's experiment.
In Rutherfords gold foil experiment shown in Figure 4-1 alpha particles that bounce straight back from the foil have struck in the gold atoms?
No, they struck the nucleus of the atom. Since the alpha particles are positively charged and nucleus is positively charged as well, they repelled each other and alpha particles are repelled back
What will happen if you use beta particles on gold foil?
If the alpha particles hit the gold foil most of the alpha particles will pass through the gold foil because atoms mostly consists of empty space and some alpha particles will be deflected including a very small number of alpha particles will bounce back in the direction they came from because the atom has a very small positively charged mass called the nucleus.
What happened to the alpha particles as they hit the gold foil?
They stop.
How did Rutherford know an atom was mostly empty pace?
Most of his test particles (alpha particles) when straight through.
How did Rutherford know the nucleus was positively charged?
the nucleus is positively charged because it bounces right off of the gold foil
