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    Center of Biomedical Engineering Medical Radiation Physics (Phys-2223)

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    Sador Yonas
    This document provides an overview of the structure of atoms including: 1) Atoms are composed of a dense positively charged nucleus surrounded by negatively charged electrons. 2) Electrons orbit the nucleus in discrete energy shells designated by letters and numbers. The inner shells have higher binding energies. 3) The number of protons determines the atomic number and chemical properties, while the total protons and neutrons make up the mass number.

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    Center of Biomedical Engineering Medical Radiation Physics (Phys-2223)

    Uploaded by

    Sador Yonas
    39 views6 pages
    This document provides an overview of the structure of atoms including: 1) Atoms are composed of a dense positively charged nucleus surrounded by negatively charged electrons. 2) Electrons orbit the nucleus in discrete energy shells designated by letters and numbers. The inner shells have higher binding energies. 3) The number of protons determines the atomic number and chemical properties, while the total protons and neutrons make up the mass number.

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    Chapter 1_Lecture 2

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    This document provides an overview of the structure of atoms including: 1) Atoms are composed of a dense positively charged nucleus surrounded by negatively charged electrons. 2) Electrons orbit the nucleus in discrete energy shells designated by letters and numbers. The inner shells have higher binding energies. 3) The number of protons determines the atomic number and chemical properties, while the total protons and neutrons make up the mass number.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    39 views6 pages

    Center of Biomedical Engineering Medical Radiation Physics (Phys-2223)

    Uploaded by

    Sador Yonas
    This document provides an overview of the structure of atoms including: 1) Atoms are composed of a dense positively charged nucleus surrounded by negatively charged electrons. 2) Electrons orbit the nucleus in discrete energy shells designated by letters and numbers. The inner shells have higher binding energies. 3) The number of protons determines the atomic number and chemical properties, while the total protons and neutrons make up the mass number.

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    Center of Biomedical Engineering

    Medical Radiation Physics [Phys-2223]

    By Nardos Hailu
    Structure of the Atom
    • The atom is the smallest division of an element in which the
    chemical identity of the element is maintained. It is composed
    of an extremely dense positively charged nucleus, containing
    protons and neutrons, and an extra-nuclear cloud of light
    negatively charged electrons.
    • In its non-ionized state, an atom is electrically neutral because
    the number of protons equals the number of electrons.
    • The radius of an atom is approximately an angstrom whereas
    that of the nucleus is only about 10-14 m.
    Electron Orbits and Electron
    Binding Energy
    • In the Bohr model of the atom, electrons orbit around a dense,
    positively charged nucleus at fixed distances.
    • In this model of the atom, each electron occupies a discrete
    energy state in a given electron shell. These electron shells are
    assigned the letters K L, M, N… inside out, with decreasing
    energy.
    • The shells are also assigned the quantum numbers 1, 2, 3, 4…
    with the quantum number 1 designating the K shell (Fig.1
    below). Each shell can contain a maximum number of electrons
    given by (2n2), where n is the quantum number of the shell.
    Thus, the K shell (n = 1) can only hold 2 electrons, the L shell (n=
    2) can hold 2(2)2 or 8 electrons, and soon.
    Cont….
    • The outer electron shell of an atom, the valence shell, determines the
    chemical properties of the element.

    • The energy required to completely remove an orbital electron from the


    atom is called orbital binding energy. Thus, for radiation to be ionizing, the
    energy transferred to the electron must equal or exceed its binding energy.

    • Due to the closer proximity of the electrons to the positively charged


    nucleus, the binding energy of the K-shell is greater than that of outer
    shells. For a particular electron shell, binding energy also increases with the
    number of protons in the nucleus (i.e., atomic number). To transfer an
    electron from one shell to another, we need energy which at least equals
    the energy difference between the two shells, called transition energy.
    Cont…
    • The nucleus is composed of protons and neutrons, known
    collectively as nucleons. The number of protons in the nucleus is the
    atomic number (Z), and the total number of protons and neutrons
    within the nucleus is the mass number (A).

    • It is important not to confuse the mass number with the atomic


    mass, which is the actual mass of the atom. For example, the mass
    number of oxygen-16 is 16 (8 protons and 8 neutrons), whereas its
    atomic mass is 15.9994 amu.
    Fig.1. Electron shell designations and orbital filling rules

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