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The electrons are negatively charged, and this opposing charge is what binds them to the nucleus. If the numbers of protons and electrons are equal, as they normally are, then the atom is electrically neutral as a whole. If an atom has more electrons than protons, then it has an overall negative charge, and is called a negative ion (or anion ...
For example, a neutral chlorine atom has 17 protons and 17 electrons, whereas a Cl − anion has 17 protons and 18 electrons for a total charge of −1. All atoms of a given element are not necessarily identical, however. The number of neutrons may vary to form different isotopes, and energy levels may differ, resulting in different nuclear ...
An example is the muon, with a mean lifetime of 2.2 × 10 −6 seconds, which decays into an electron, a muon neutrino and an electron antineutrino. The electron, on the other hand, is thought to be stable on theoretical grounds: the electron is the least massive particle with non-zero electric charge, so its decay would violate charge ...
The number of protons is called the atomic number of that element. For example, oxygen has an atomic number of 8, meaning each oxygen atom has 8 protons in its nucleus. Atoms of the same element can have different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei, known as isotopes of the element. Two or more atoms can combine to form molecules.
As an example, to a great extent, the mass of an atom is simply the sum of the masses of its constituent protons, neutrons and electrons. However, digging deeper, the protons and neutrons are made up of quarks bound together by gluon fields (see dynamics of quantum chromodynamics ) and these gluon fields contribute significantly to the mass of ...
For ordinary nuclei composed of protons and neutrons, this is equal to the proton number (n p) or the number of protons found in the nucleus of every atom of that element. The atomic number can be used to uniquely identify ordinary chemical elements. In an ordinary uncharged atom, the atomic number is also equal to the number of electrons.
The net charge of an ion is not zero because its total number of electrons is unequal to its total number of protons. A cation is a positively charged ion with fewer electrons than protons [2] (e.g. K + (potassium ion)) while an anion is a negatively charged ion with more electrons than protons. [3] (e.g. Cl-(chloride ion) and OH-(hydroxide ion)).
Protons and neutrons are, in turn, made of quarks. Each type of atom corresponds to a specific chemical element. To date, 118 elements have been discovered or created. Exotic atoms may be composed of particles in addition to or in place of protons, neutrons, and electrons, such as hyperons or muons. Examples include pionium (π − π +