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AS Chemistry CIE Notes Struc

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Determining
Subatomic
Structure (CIE AS
Chemistry)
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Richard Chemistry

Key Terms of Atomic Structure

The atomic number (or proton

number) is the number of protons in
the nucleus of an atom and has the
symbol Z
The atomic number is also equal
to the number of electrons
present in a neutral atom of an
element
E.g. the atomic number of
lithium is 3, meaning that a
neutral lithium atom has 3
protons and therefore, also has
3 electrons

The mass number (or nucleon

number) is the total number of
protons + neutrons in the nucleus of
an atom, and has the symbol A
The number of neutrons can be
calculated by:

Number of neutrons = mass number -

atomic number

Protons and neutrons are also

called nucleons, because they
are found in the nucleus

Exam Tip

The mass (nucleon) and atomic

(proton) number are given for each
element in the Periodic Table

Determining the Subatomic

Structure of Atoms & Ions
An atom is neutral and has no overall
charge
Ions on the other hand are formed
when atoms either gain or lose
electrons, causing them to become
charged
The number of subatomic particles
in atoms and ions can be
determined given their atomic
(proton) number, mass (nucleon)
number and charge

Protons
The atomic number of an atom and
ion determines which element it is
Therefore, all atoms and ions of the
same element have the same
number of protons (atomic number)
in the nucleus
E.g. lithium has an atomic
number of 3 (three protons)
whereas beryllium has atomic
number of 4 (4 protons)

The number of protons equals the

atomic (proton) number
The number of protons of an
unknown element can be
calculated by using its mass number
and number of neutrons:

Mass number = number of protons +

number of neutrons

Number of protons = mass number -

number of neutrons

Worked example
Determine the number of protons in the
following ions and atoms:

1. Mg2+ ion
2. Carbon atom
3. An unknown atom of element X with
mass number 63 and 34 neutrons

Answer 1:

The atomic number of a

magnesium atom is 12 suggesting
that the number of protons in the
magnesium element is 12
Therefore, the number of protons in
a Mg2+ ion is also 12

Answer 2:

The atomic number of a carbon

atom is 6 suggesting that a carbon
atom has 6 protons in its nucleus

Answer 3:

Use the formula to calculate the

number of protons
Number of protons = mass
number - number of neutrons
Number of protons = 63 - 34
Number of protons = 29
Element X is therefore copper

Electrons
An atom is neutral and therefore has
the same number of protons and
electrons
Ions have a di"erent number of
electrons to their atomic number
depending on their charge
A positively charged ion has
lost electrons and therefore
has fewer electrons than
protons
A negatively charged ion has
gained electrons and therefore
has more electrons than
protons

Worked example
Determine the number of electrons in
the following ions and atoms:

1. Mg2+ ion
2. Carbon atom
3. An unknown atom of element X with
mass number 63 and 34 neutrons

Answer 1:

The atomic number of a

magnesium atom is 12 suggesting
that the number of protons in the
neutral magnesium atom is 12
However, the 2+ charge in the Mg2+
ion suggests it has lost two
electrons
It only has 10 electrons left now

Answer 2:

The atomic number of a carbon

atom is 6 suggesting that the
neutral carbon atom has 6
electrons orbiting around the
nucleus

Answer 3:

The number of protons of element

X can be calculated by:
Number of protons = mass
number - number of neutrons
Number of protons = 63 - 34
Number of protons = 29
The neutral atom of element X
therefore also has 29 electrons

Neutrons
The mass and atomic numbers can
be used to find the number of
neutrons in ions and atoms:

Number of neutrons = mass number (A)

- number of protons (Z)

Worked example
Determine the number of neutrons in
the following ions and atoms:

1. Mg2+ ion
2. Carbon atom
3. An unknown atom of element X with
an atomic number of 29 and a mass
number of 63

Answer 1:

The atomic number of a

magnesium atom is 12 and its mass
number is 24
Number of neutrons = mass
number (A) - number of
protons (Z)
Number of neutrons = 24 - 12
Number of neutrons = 12
The Mg2+ ion has 12 neutrons in its
nucleus

Answer 2:

The atomic number of a carbon

atom is 6 and its mass number is 12
Number of neutrons = mass
number (A) - number of
protons (Z)
Number of neutrons = 12 - 6
Number of neutrons = 6
The carbon atom has 6 neutrons in
its nucleus

Answer 3:

The atomic number of an element X

atom is 29 and its mass number is
63
Number of neutrons = mass
number (A) - number of
protons (Z)
Number of neutrons = 63 - 29
Number of neutrons = 34
The neutral atom of element X has
34 neutrons in its nucleus

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1. Atomic Structure

1.1 Particles in the Atom & …

Atomic Structure & Subatomic

Particles

Determining Subatomic Structure

Variations in Atomic & Ionic Radius

1.2 Isotopes

1.3 Electrons, Energy Leve…

1.4 Ionisation Energy

2. Atoms, Molecules & Stoichi…

3. Chemical Bonding

4. States of Matter

5. Chemical Energetics

6. Electrochemistry

7. Equilibria

8. Reaction Kinetics

9. The Periodic Table: Chemica…

10. Group 2

11. Group 17

12. Nitrogen & Sulfur

13. An Introduction to AS Level …

14. Hydrocarbons

15. Halogen Compounds

16. Hydroxy Compounds

17. Carbonyl Compounds

18. Carboxylic Acids & Derivati…

19. Nitrogen Compounds

20. Polymerisation

21. Organic Synthesis

22. Analytical Techniques

Related Topic Questions

Particles in the Atom & Atomic Radius

Isotopes

Electrons, Energy Levels & Atomic

Orbitals

Ionisation Energy

Relative Masses of Atoms & Molecules

The Mole & the Avogadro Constant

Formulas

Reacting Masses & Volumes (of Solutions

& Gases)

Electronegativity & Bonding

Ionic Bonding

Author: Richard
Richard has taught Chemistry for over 15
years as well as working as a science
tutor, examiner, content creator and
author. He wasn’t the greatest at exams
and only discovered how to revise in his
final year at university. That knowledge
made him want to help students learn
how to revise, challenge them to think
about what they actually know and
hopefully succeed; so here he is,
happily, at SME.

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