What does electricity have to do with the atomic theory of matter?

Answer 1

Everything we see is made up of tiny little parts called atoms. The atoms are made of even smaller parts. These are called protons, electrons and neutrons. They are very different from each other in many ways. One way they are different is their "charge." Protons have a positive (+) charge. Electrons have a negative (-) charge. Neutrons have no charge.

Usually, atoms have the same number of electrons and protons. Then the atom has no charge, it is "neutral." But if you rub things together, electrons can move from one atom to another. Some atoms get extra electrons. They have a negative charge. Other atoms lose electrons. They have a positive charge. When charges are separated like this, it is called static electricity.

Answer 2

The atomic theory of matter states:

1) All matter is comprised of fundamental substances called elements.

2) An element is made up of a number of identical atoms.

3) Atoms are made up of subatomic particles called protons, neutrons, and electrons.

4) protons are positively charged, electrons are negatively charged and neutrons have no charge.

In one word the answer to your question is "charge".

charge is a property that particles can have. Particles (or objects) that have charge can interact with each other through the electric force. This is completely analogous to the fact that particles with mass can interact with each other through a gravitational force. In fact notice how similar the equations for electric force and gravitational force are:

Fe=kq1q2/d^2, where k is a constant, q is charge, and d is the distance between particles.

Fg=Gm1m2/d^2, where G is a constant, m is mass, and d is the distance between particles.

Electricity is the way in which charges interact with each other. It plays a key role in the atomic theory of matter. The structure of an atom is dependent on the electric force between protons and electrons. The nucleus of an atom is made of protons and neutrons and an electron cloud exists around this nucleus because each negatively charged electron experience an attractive force given by Fe=kq1q2/d^2 toward the positively charged protons.

Cations, positively charged atoms, interact with anions, negatively charged atoms, to create ionic bonds in molecules. This interaction is due to the electric force. Covalent bonds are weaker than ionic bonds because they are formed when two atoms share an electron, but the fundamental force involved in covalent bonding is still and electrical attraction between protons in two nuclei and electrons in the new electron cloud that is formed. All chemical bonds, ionic, covalent, polar covalent, and hydrogen bonds are influenced by the electrical force.

An interesting fact is that every direct interaction with our macroscopic world is essentially an electrical interaction. Since everything in the universe is made up of an assortment of atomic nuclei surrounded by clouds of electrons (atoms and molecules), any physical reaction is due to an electrical force. When you stand on the ground, the force of gravity on you, your weight, is directed toward the center of the earth. But what prevents you from slipping through the ground and being pulled to the earths core? There is an electrical repulsion between the electron clouds of the molecules that make up the tissue of your feet and the electron cloud of the molecules that make up the ground that you are standing on.

Answer 3

No, that is not true.