The Naked Scientists
  • Login
  • Register
  • Podcasts
      • The Naked Scientists
      • eLife
      • Naked Genetics
      • Naked Astronomy
      • In short
      • Naked Neuroscience
      • Ask! The Naked Scientists
      • Question of the Week
      • Archive
      • Video
      • SUBSCRIBE to our Podcasts
  • Articles
      • Science News
      • Features
      • Interviews
      • Answers to Science Questions
  • Get Naked
      • Donate
      • Do an Experiment
      • Science Forum
      • Ask a Question
  • About
      • Meet the team
      • Our Sponsors
      • Site Map
      • Contact us

User menu

  • Login
  • Register
  • Home
  • Help
  • Search
  • Tags
  • Member Map
  • Recent Topics
  • Login
  • Register
  1. Naked Science Forum
  2. General Science
  3. General Science
  4. Atom?
« previous next »
  • Print
Pages: [1]   Go Down

Atom?

  • 8 Replies
  • 611 Views
  • 1 Tags

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Zer0 (OP)

  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ******
  • 1326
  • Activity:
    45.5%
  • Thanked: 146 times
  • Yo! y r u chekin ma profyle?
    • View Profile
Atom?
« on: 19/03/2023 00:31:04 »
Is an Atom still Indestructible?
Logged
1N73LL1G3NC3  15  7H3  481L17Y  70  4D4P7  70  CH4NG3.
 



Offline Kryptid

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ********
  • 7683
  • Activity:
    7.5%
  • Thanked: 465 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #1 on: 19/03/2023 00:58:56 »
No. Radioactive decay breaks atoms apart naturally.
Logged
 

Offline evan_au

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum GOD!
  • ********
  • 10756
  • Activity:
    18.5%
  • Thanked: 1385 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #2 on: 19/03/2023 08:28:16 »
"Atom": Greek for "Not Cut(table)"

The original idea of Democritus was philosophical - if you keep cutting things in pieces, you eventually get to something that cannot be cut in pieces: the "atom".

Whether you can cut things in pieces depends on your technology:
- Cutting macroscopic things in pieces depends on how sharp you can make a knife.
- Cutting molecules in pieces depends on how strong you can make acids (many new elements found by Alchemists in the middle ages)
- Separating electrons and the nucleus depends on how strong you can make an electric field (around 1800s)
- Separating components of the nucleus depends on particle accelerators (1900s - if you ignore natural decays)
- Distinguishing the quark components of triquarks (protons and neutrons), diquarks and tetraquarks is possible with the highest-power accelerators - but completely separating quarks is not possible with current technology
- Are the electron and quark truly fundamental  and uncuttable - the true "atoms"? Only time will tell.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democritus#Atomic_hypothesis
Logged
 

Offline Halc

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ********
  • 2378
  • Activity:
    6.5%
  • Thanked: 730 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #3 on: 19/03/2023 13:49:14 »
Quote from: Zer0 on 19/03/2023 00:31:04
Is an Atom still Indestructible?
Technically, all you have to do is heat it up quite a bit (or put it in a strong electric field as mentioned above).
At a certain temperature, it turns to plasma, kind of like boiling turns liquid into gas. Plasma is the same element but with the electron stripped away, and a nucleus without its electrons is no longer an atom. But let it cool and the atom will reform.
Splitting an atom (decay, fusion, violence, whatever) is more permanent and the original atom is gone.
« Last Edit: 19/03/2023 13:53:21 by Halc »
Logged
 

Offline Zer0 (OP)

  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ******
  • 1326
  • Activity:
    45.5%
  • Thanked: 146 times
  • Yo! y r u chekin ma profyle?
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #4 on: 22/03/2023 18:55:08 »
If Practically it is Possible to destruct/dismantle/destroy an Atom...
Then, is it Atleast Theoretically possible to construct/assemble an Atom?

Say if i had 3 jars each filled up with protons, neutrons & electrons...
Then mixing up 6p, 6n, & 6e..
Could i Create C?
Logged
1N73LL1G3NC3  15  7H3  481L17Y  70  4D4P7  70  CH4NG3.
 



Offline Halc

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ********
  • 2378
  • Activity:
    6.5%
  • Thanked: 730 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #5 on: 22/03/2023 21:59:14 »
Quote from: Zer0 on 22/03/2023 18:55:08
Then, is it Atleast Theoretically possible to construct/assemble an Atom?
Well of course. Every carbon atom anywhere was constructed at some point. It's not like the universe was born with them.

Quote
Say if i had 3 jars each filled up with protons, neutrons & electrons...
Then mixing up 6p, 6n, & 6e..
Could i Create C?
I'm sure it's possible, but there's not really a procedure that a human can do to achieve that.
The jar of neutrons will quickly decay, so you'd have to do it fast if you used that method. The more normal method is just 2 jars of 12 each protons and electrons. That's what's out there, and most of the neutrons get created by combining the protons. Neutrons are stable when combined with protons.

The sun creates 12C nuclei in vast quantities all the time, but most of that is due to protons striking 15N which splits each nitrogen into a helium and carbon nucleus. The new carbon nuclei are destroyed almost exactly as fast as they are created. 13C is created is almost equal quantities by the decay of 13N, an isotope with a half-life of only about 10 minutes. Point is, most of the carbon created doesn't stay carbon for very long.
Most of the nuclei are not atoms since it's too hot for atoms to form. The electrons only combine with the nuclei to form actual atoms if it is all cooled enough, like on Earth. So the jar of electrons is added after the 12 protons are combined via whatever smashing one cares to do.
The sun is such a violent place. Anything you build there (a house say), probably won't last long.
« Last Edit: 22/03/2023 22:07:32 by Halc »
Logged
 

Offline evan_au

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum GOD!
  • ********
  • 10756
  • Activity:
    18.5%
  • Thanked: 1385 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #6 on: 23/03/2023 03:19:48 »
By combining protons with electrons, you would make Hydrogen atoms.
- In fact, your jar of protons will probably grab a few electrons from the jar it is in (or the air inside the jar)
- If you "pour" your neutrons into the proton jar, you might form some Deuterium atoms (but you had better be quick - glass does not hold neutrons very well)

However, getting to the next elements (Lithium and Helium) doesn't occur at all rapidly under standard laboratory conditions (25C, 1 atmosphere pressure), because protons repel each other strongly due to their positive charge.
- Physicists have had some success at producing Helium with temperatures of millions of degrees, and pressures far higher than atmospheric pressure...
- Producing carbon requires even higher temperatures and pressures...
Logged
 

Offline Zer0 (OP)

  • Naked Science Forum King!
  • ******
  • 1326
  • Activity:
    45.5%
  • Thanked: 146 times
  • Yo! y r u chekin ma profyle?
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #7 on: 24/03/2023 20:12:05 »
Thank You All for your Detailed Responses.
Much Appreciated.

Wish One of U, or Y'all could have possibly collaborated & Created an Atom.

I had read about individual Protons being used for Nuclear Fuel Enrichment.
Also read about individual Electrons used for Double Slit Experiments.

Surely You folks could make out a workable instrument to shoot 1p from one end and 1e from the other, and end up with an H in the middle.

P.S. - I'd Love to click on clickbaits from pop sci magz stating...
" Scientists turn into Demi-Gods by Creating an Atom! ".
(doo itt...doo itt)
Logged
1N73LL1G3NC3  15  7H3  481L17Y  70  4D4P7  70  CH4NG3.
 

Offline evan_au

  • Global Moderator
  • Naked Science Forum GOD!
  • ********
  • 10756
  • Activity:
    18.5%
  • Thanked: 1385 times
    • View Profile
Re: Atom?
« Reply #8 on: 24/03/2023 21:05:47 »
Quote from: Zer0
a workable instrument to shoot 1p from one end and 1e from the other, and end up with an H in the middle.
"Shoot" is a very emotive word.
- Old-fashioned vacuum-tube TVs could be said to shoot electrons at a phosphor screen, often accelerated by voltages up to 25,000 Volts DC.
- The drift tubes of a particle accelerator effectively build up a DC voltage of TeraVolts by using AC (and shielding the particles during the negative half of the AC waveform)
- However, the highest electron energy transition in a Hydrogen atom (from "infinity" to the n=1 shell)  has an energy of just 13.6 eV
- So, rather than shoot electrons and protons at each other using thousands of volts, you need to let them drift towards each other, and they will combine without much encouragement at all.
- In fact, any physical piece of equipment will release particles from an effectively "infinite" distance (considered on the subatomic scale), so just drifting together will attain an effective energy of 13.6 eV.
Logged
 



  • Print
Pages: [1]   Go Up
« previous next »
Tags: atom 
 

Similar topics (5)

What is a "neutron bomb", and how does it differ from an "atom bomb"?

Started by georgeBoard Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology

Replies: 13
Views: 23527
Last post 05/02/2007 18:45:36
by Batroost
How much would 1 H atom, 2He atoms, 4 Li atoms, 8 Be atoms... weigh?

Started by chiralSPOBoard Chemistry

Replies: 8
Views: 7551
Last post 22/01/2018 15:44:17
by chiralSPO
What does theory predict for the average velocity of a single atom in a black hole?

Started by John Burnap Board Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology

Replies: 0
Views: 4286
Last post 06/02/2011 21:30:03
by John Burnap
MOVED: Could the cross product in spherical coordinates be a scalar volume atom?

Started by Colin2BBoard Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology

Replies: 0
Views: 1169
Last post 05/12/2020 17:32:30
by Colin2B
Does dipole moment affect the direction that light is emitted from an atom?

Started by Mr AndrewBoard Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology

Replies: 12
Views: 11331
Last post 12/12/2007 21:18:02
by lyner
There was an error while thanking
Thanking...
  • SMF 2.0.15 | SMF © 2017, Simple Machines
    Privacy Policy
    SMFAds for Free Forums
  • Naked Science Forum ©

Page created in 0.134 seconds with 57 queries.

  • Podcasts
  • Articles
  • Get Naked
  • About
  • Contact us
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe to newsletter
  • We love feedback

Follow us

cambridge_logo_footer.png

©The Naked Scientists® 2000–2017 | The Naked Scientists® and Naked Science® are registered trademarks created by Dr Chris Smith. Information presented on this website is the opinion of the individual contributors and does not reflect the general views of the administrators, editors, moderators, sponsors, Cambridge University or the public at large.