The First Atomic Model


Thomson’s experiments showed that atoms were made up of different components, and that the atom could be broken up. Thomson was also the first to propose the possible structure of the atom. He knew that atoms were electrically neutral, so there must be an equal and opposite positive charge to counter-act the negative charges of the electrons. He theorized that the negative electrons were embedded throughout a sphere of positive charge. As it turns out, this model is wrong, because Thomson’s model makes it nearly impossible to knock the electrons off the atom. Thomson’s experiments did, however, allow him discover ions, or atoms with a charge (made by adding or removing electrons), and he won one of the first Nobel prizes for physics.

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