ATOMIC

STRUCTURE & THE

PERIODIC TABLE
PROTONS, NEUTRONS & ELECTRONS
• Elements are made of tiny particles of matter called atoms
• Each atom is made of subatomic particles
called protons, neutrons and electrons
• Their size is so tiny that we can’t really compare their masses in conventional
units such as kilograms or grams, so a unit called the relative atomic mass is
used
• One relative atomic mass unit is equal to the mass of a carbon-12 atom.
• All other elements are measured relative to the mass of a carbon-12 atom and
since these are ratios, the relative atomic mass has no units
• Hydrogen for example has a relative atomic mass of 1, meaning that 12 atoms
of hydrogen would have exactly the same mass as 1 atom of carbon
• The relative mass and charge of the subatomic particles are shown below:
 RELATIVE APPROXIMATE
CHARGE RELATIVE MASS

Protons, P +
1+ 1

Electrons, e -
1 -

Neutrons, n 0
0 (neutral) 1
PROTON NUMBER
•The atomic number (or proton number)
is the number of protons in the nucleus of
an atom. The symbol for this number is Z
•It is also the number of electrons present
in an atom and determines the position of
the element on the Periodic Table
Nucleon Number
• Nucleon number (or mass number) is the total
number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an
atom. The symbol for this number is A
• The nucleon number minus the proton number gives
you the number of neutrons of an atom
• Note that protons and neutrons can collectively be
called nucleons.
• The atomic number and mass number for every element
is on the Periodic Table
NUCLEON NUMBER
For all practical calculations, the relative molecular mass of an
electron is assumed to be ZERO.
Proton number (atomic number, Z):
The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom
Nucleon number (Atomic mass, A):
The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of
an atom
Number of neutrons = Nucleon number – Proton number
Electrons (symbol e )
–

•These subatomic particles move very fast

around the nucleus
•They move in orbital paths called shells
•The mass of the electron is negligible,
hence the mass of an atom is contained
within the nucleus where the neutron and
proton reside
ATOMIC MODEL
WHAT IS AN ATOM
• An atom consists of a central nucleus that is
usually surrounded by one or more electrons.
• Each electron is negatively charged.
• The nucleus is positively charged, and
contains one or more relatively heavy
particles known as protons and neutrons.
• A proton is positively charged.
THE STRUCTURE OF CARBON ATOM
EXAM TIP
•Both the atomic number and the mass
number are given on the Periodic Table but it
can be easy to confuse them.

•Think MASS = MASSIVE, as the mass number is

always the bigger of the two numbers, the
other smaller one is thus the atomic / proton
number.
THE BASIS OF THE PERIODIC TABLE
• Elements are arranged on the Periodic table in order
of increasing atomic number where each element has one
proton more than the element preceding it
• Hydrogen has 1 proton, helium has 2 protons, lithium has 3
etc.
• The table is arranged in vertical columns called Groups
numbered I – VIII and in rows called Periods numbered 1 – 7
• Elements in the same group have the same amount of
electrons in their outer shell, which gives them similar
chemical properties
PERIODIC REPRESENTATION OF ELEMENTS
EXAM TIP
•The proton number is unique to each
element and could be considered as
an element’s “fingerprint”.
•Electrons come and go during
chemical processes but the proton
number doesn’t change.
ISOTOPES
• Isotopes are atoms of the same element that contain the
same number of protons and electrons but a different
number of neutrons.
• The symbol for an isotope is the chemical symbol (or
word) followed by a dash and then the mass number.
• So C-14 is the isotope of carbon which contains 6
protons, 6 electrons and 14 – 6 = 8 neutrons.
• The atomic structure and symbols of the three isotopes
of hydrogen:
TYPES OF ISOTOPE
• Isotopes can be divided into two categories: radioactive and non-radioactive

• Radioactive isotopes (radioisotopes) are unstable due to the imbalance of

neutrons and protons, which causes the nucleus to decay over time
through nuclear fission and emit radiation. Examples of radioisotopes
include tritium and carbon-14
• Decay occurs at a different rate for each isotope, but the time taken for the
radioactivity of an isotope to decrease by 50% is constant for that particular
isotope and is known as the half-life
• Radioactive isotopes have numerous medical and industrial uses
• Non-radioactive isotopes are stable atoms which really only differ in their
mass
USES OF RADIOACTIVE ISOTOPES
1. Medical uses
• Radiation is extremely harmful and kills cells so isotopes are
used to treat cancer. The isotope cobalt-60 is frequently used
for this purpose
• Medical tracers as certain parts of the body absorb isotopes
and others do not. In this way an isotope can be injected into
the blood and its path through the body traced with a
radioactive detecting camera, revealing the flow of blood
through bodily systems
• Medical instruments and materials are routinely sterilized by
exposure to radiation, which kills any bacteria present
USES OF RADIOACTIVE ISOTOPES
2. Industrial uses
• Radioactive dating uses the carbon-14 isotope to date
carbon-containing materials such as organic matter, rocks
and other artefacts. The half-life of C-14 is 5730 years
and so this technique is often used to date very old
historical objects
• Similar to medical use, radioactive tracers are deployed to
detect leaks in gas or oil pipes
• The radioactive isotope uranium-235 is used
as nuclear in power plants in controlled fission reactions
EXAM TIP
•Radioactive decay is a random
process which occurs inside the
nucleus and is independent of
temperature, pressure, pH etc. It is a
nuclear process and is not
considered a chemical reaction.
Why Isotopes Share Properties
• Isotopes of the same element display the same
chemical characteristics
• This is because they have the same number of electrons
in their outer shells and this is what determines an
atom’s chemistry
• The difference between isotopes is the neutrons which
are neutral particles within the nucleus and add mass
only.
ELECTRON
SHELLS
Electronic structure
•We can represent the structure of the
atom in two ways: using diagrams
called electron shell diagrams or
by writing out a special notation
called the electronic configuration
Electron shell diagrams
• Electrons orbit the nucleus in shells (or energy levels) and each shell has a
different amount of energy associated with it
• The further away from the nucleus then the more energy a shell has.
• Electrons occupy the shell closest to the nucleus which can hold
only 2 electrons and which go in separately
• When a shell becomes full, electrons then fill the next shell
• The second shell can hold 8 electrons and the third shell can also
hold 8 electrons and the electrons organize themselves in pairs in these
shells
• The outermost shell of an atom is called the valence shell and an atom is
much more stable if it can manage to completely fill this shell with
electrons
Electron shell diagrams
Electronic configuration
• The arrangement of electrons in shells can also be explained using
numbers
• There is a clear relationship between the outer shell electrons and
how the Periodic Table is designed
• The number of notations in the electronic configuration will show the
number of shells of electrons the atom has, showing the Period in
which that element is in
• The last notation shows the number of outer electrons the atom has,
showing the Group that element is in
• Elements in the same Group have the same number of
outer shell electrons
Electronic configuration

• Period: The red numbers at the bottom show the number of notations

which is 3, showing that a chlorine atom has 3 shells of electrons
• Group: The green box highlights the last notation which is 7,
showing that a chlorine atom has 7 outer electrons
The position of chlorine on the Periodic Table
THE NOBLE GASES
• The atoms of the Group 8/0 elements all have 8 electrons in
their outer shells, with the exception of helium which has 2.
But since helium has only 2 electrons in total and thus the
first shell is full (which is the only shell), it is thus the outer
shell so helium also has a full valency shell
• All of the noble gases are unreactive as they have full outer
shells and are thus very stable
• All elements wish to fill their outer shells with electrons
as this is a much more stable and desirable
configuration
OCTET RULE
Noble gases (Group VIII/0 elements) have eight (8)
electrons in their outer electron shell and are chemically
inert.
Exception: Helium has a complete outer shell with two
electrons.
Other elements try to attain the electronic
configuration of the nearest noble gas by
gain/loss/sharing of electrons.
The noble gases are on the Periodic Table in Group 8/0
Note: 
•Although the third shell can hold up to 18
electrons, the filling of the shells follows a
more complicated pattern after potassium and
calcium. For these two elements, the third
shell holds 8 and the remaining electrons (for
reasons of stability) occupy the fourth shell
first before filling the third shell.
PRACTICE
EXERCISES