Rutherford Gold Foil Scattering

Fire a continuous stream of alpha particles at a dense lattice of Gold nuclei (Au-79). Watch how the inverse-square Coulomb law dictates violent scattering trajectories, proving that atoms are mostly empty space harboring microscopic dense positive cores.

RUTHERFORD SCATTERING

Experimental evidence that an atom has a dense, positively charged nucleus.

CORE FORMULAS

Coulomb Force

AP EXAM CONNECTION

Unit: Unit 1: Atomic Structure
Learning Objective: SPQ-1.B

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS

Thinking the entire atom is solid.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Most of an atom is empty space.

DEEP DIVE: RELATED CONCEPTS

ELECTRON CONFIGURATION

Electrons fill orbitals following the Aufbau Principle, Pauli Exclusion Principle, and Hund's Rule....

RELATED VISUALIZATIONS

AP CHEMISTRY

First-Order Kinetics Decay

Analyze first-order reactions where the rate depends linearly on one reactant concentration: rate = k[A]. Visualize exponential decay using the integrated rate law ln[A]t = ln[A]₀ - kt, and understand that first-order reactions have constant half-life t₁/₂ = 0.693/k independent of initial concentration. Explore applications in radioactive decay, drug metabolism, and chemical decomposition reactions.

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AP CHEMISTRY

Photoelectron Spectroscopy (PES)

Interpret photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) data to determine electron configuration and relative energies of electrons in different orbitals. Analyze PES spectra where peak position indicates binding energy (related to Coulomb's law and effective nuclear charge) and peak height represents the number of electrons. Practice identifying elements from their PES spectra and understanding how core versus valence electrons produce distinct peaks.

2,948 views

AP CHEMISTRY

Gas Laws

Explore the fundamental gas laws that describe relationships between pressure, volume, temperature, and amount of gas. Visualize Boyle's Law (P₁V₁ = P₂V₂), Charles's Law (V₁/T₁ = V₂/T₂), Gay-Lussac's Law (P₁/T₁ = P₂/T₂), Avogadro's Law (V₁/n₁ = V₂/n₂), and the Combined Gas Law. Understand how these individual laws combine to form the Ideal Gas Law PV = nRT.

2,377 views

AP CHEMISTRY

Electron Configuration

Build electron configurations for atoms and ions using the Aufbau principle, Hund's rule, and the Pauli exclusion principle. Visualize how electrons fill orbitals in order of increasing energy (1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d...), understand noble gas notation shortcuts, and identify valence electrons. Explore exceptions like chromium and copper, and connect electron configuration to periodic trends and chemical reactivity.

2,254 views