Protons and neutrons
Protons and Neutrons
Protons and neutrons are the particles that account for most of an atom's mass. Electrons, which have much less mass, play a negligible role in the overall mass of an atom.
The particles in an atom that account for most of its mass are protons and neutrons, not electrons. Protons, which are positively charged, and neutrons, which have no charge, reside in the nucleus and contribute significantly to the atomic mass. Electrons are much lighter and orbit the nucleus, but their mass is negligible compared to that of protons and neutrons. Thus, the majority of an atom's mass comes from the nucleus.
Physics has not managed to discover a particle that accounts for mass
In the gold foil experiment by Rutherford, most alpha particles passed through the gold foil, indicating that atoms are mostly empty space. The few particles that were deflected showed that the positive charge of the atom is concentrated in a small, dense nucleus, which explains why most of the particles passed through without being deflected.
The most space of an atom is vacuum.
Most of the particles went through the gold foil, but only a few bounced back.
Rutherford discovered that atoms are mostly empty space through his famous gold foil experiment. He observed that most of the alpha particles passed straight through the foil, indicating that atoms had a lot of empty space. The few particles that were deflected showed that the positive charge in an atom is concentrated in a small nucleus at the center.
The experimental evidence led Rutherford to conclude that an atom is mostly empty space because most of the particles weren't deflected off of the gold foil in his experiment.
Protons and NeutronsMost of the space of an atom is just that. Space. The protons and neutrons make up most of the mass and are at the centre of the atom. The electrons orbit this central core in an electron 'cloud'. This cloud can be many orders of magnitude larger than the nucleus.
Most of an atom is filled with empty space. The nucleus, which contains protons and neutrons, makes up only a small portion of the atom's total volume. Electrons, which orbit the nucleus at varying distances, make up the rest of the space within an atom.
Empty Space, but if we're talking in terms of the actual particles. Protons and Neutrons. Electrons count for almost none of the mass.