Is silver an atom or ion?

Answer 1

Assuming it is just a particle of silver with no other interactions, it would just be an atom. It could, in other cases, be an ion instead, however: an ion is nothing more than an atom or molecule that is charged (either positively by losing an electron or negatively by gaining an extra electron.) If the atom/molecule has an equal number of protons and electrons (as it would generally be considered in an ideal textbook situation, assuming no chemical interactions), the net charge is neutral, so it would not be considered an ion.

Bottom line: + charge or - charge is a silver ion, neutral charge is just a plain old silver atom/molecule.

Answer 2

This is a more complicated question than it seems; the answer is "both, and neither." Silver is a metal; its atoms are held together by the "metallic bond". In a sense, any piece of silver, no matter how large, can be regarded as a single molecule with all the atoms participating in the shared metallic bond. However, it's much more common to think of it in terms of single atoms. A single atom of silver is also a molecule of silver.

Answer 3

Silver can exist as both an atom and an ion. In its natural state, silver is an atom with 47 protons and electrons. However, silver can easily lose one electron to form a positively charged ion known as Ag+.

Answer 4

Pure silver is made of silver atoms. Silver used in everyday life is usually alloyed with other metals such as copper.

Answer 5

500