| Atoms, the smallest particles of matter that retain the properties of the matter, are made of protons, electrons, and neutrons. |
Atoms are the smallest units of matter that keep its properties and are composed of protons, electrons, and neutrons. |
| Protons have a positive charge, Electrons have a negative charge that cancels the proton's positive charge. |
Protons carry a positive charge, while electrons carry a negative charge that balances the proton’s positive charge. |
| Neutrons are particles that are similar to a proton but have a neutral charge. |
There are no differences between positive and negative charges except that particles with the same charge repel each other and particles with opposite charges attract each other.
Target: Positive and negative charges differ mainly in that like charges repel one another, while opposite charges attract. |
| There are no differences between positive and negative charges except that particles with the same charge repel each other and particles with opposite charges attract each other. |
When a single positive proton and a negative electron are brought close together, they combine to form a hydrogen atom. |
| If a solitary positive proton and negative electron are placed near each other they will come together to form a hydrogen atom. |
This attraction and repulsion, called the electrostatic force, theoretically extends infinitely but weakens as the distance between charged particles increases. |
| This repulsion and attraction (force between stationary charged particles) is known as the Electrostatic Force and extends theoretically to infinity, but is diluted as the distance between particles increases. |
An atom becomes positively charged when it loses electrons and negatively charged when it gains extra electrons. |
| When an atom has one or more missing electrons it is left with a positive charge, and when an atom has at least one extra electron it has a negative charge. |
An atom with either a positive or negative charge is known as an ion. |
| Having a positive or a negative charge makes an atom an ion. |
Atoms can gain or lose protons and neutrons only through fusion, fission, or radioactive decay. |
| Atoms only gain and lose protons and neutrons through fusion, fission, and radioactive decay. |
Even though atoms consist of multiple particles and objects contain many atoms, they interact through attraction and repulsion much like charged particles. |
| Although atoms are made of many particles and objects are made of many atoms, they behave similarly to charged particles in terms of how they repel and attract. |
Inside an atom, protons and neutrons join together to form a tightly bound nucleus. |
| In an atom the protons and neutrons combine to form a tightly bound nucleus. |
The nucleus is surrounded by a large cloud of electrons that move around it and are held in place by electromagnetic (electrostatic) attraction. |
| This nucleus is surrounded by a vast cloud of electrons circling it at a distance but held near the protons by electromagnetic attraction (the electrostatic force discussed earlier). |
This electron cloud is arranged in overlapping shells or bands, where inner valence bands are filled with electrons tightly bound to the atom. |
| The cloud exists as a series of overlapping shells / bands in which the inner valence bands are filled with electrons and are tightly bound to the atom. |
The outer conduction bands normally have no electrons, except those that gain enough energy to move into them. |
| The outer conduction bands contain no electrons except those that have accelerated to the conduction bands by gaining energy. |
If an electron gains sufficient energy, it can escape from the atom, similar to a rocket reaching escape velocity. |
| With enough energy an electron will escape an atom (compare with the escape velocity of a space rocket). |
When an electron slows down and drops from a conduction band to another band or to the valence band, it emits a photon. |
| When an electron in the conduction band decelerates and falls to another conduction band or the valence band a photon is emitted. |
When an electron slows down and drops from a conduction band to another band or to the valence band, it emits a photon. |
| This is known as the photoelectric effect. |
When an electron slows down and drops from a conduction band to another band or to the valence band, it emits a photon. |
