what is atom and what is the significance of atom??? and what is the characters of atom
Answers
Answer: ATOMS are the smallest particles of an element.
Explanation: See first you need to know about the history of the discovery of atoms-
There was one Indian philosopher named Maharishi Kanad who postulated that if we keep on dividing matter a stage will come that we will obtain the smallest particle of that matter which he named as "Parmanu".
In the same era Greek philosophers Democritus & Leucippus postulated that after dividing matter,the smallest particle which will be obtained cannot be divided further.{Though was later proven wrong since there are still smaller particles - electrons,protons & neutrons}.
Charachteristics of atoms are-
1)Atoms are the smallest fraction of an element that can exist,and shows the charachteristics of element.
2)Atoms are further divided into electrons, protons and neutrons.
3)Most of the space in an atom is empty.
4)Protons are positively charged species, electrons are negatively charged and neutrons carry no charge on them.
5)It is the protons and neutrons which constitute the NUCLEUS of an atom.
6)Electrons revolve around the nucleus in fixed orbits/shells/quantised energy levels.
An atom is the smallest constituent unit of ordinary matter that constitutes a chemical element. Every solid, liquid, gas, and plasma is composed of neutral or ionized atoms. Atoms are extremely small; typical sizes are around 100 picometers.