Practice Test

Question 5 • Chemistry

Which diagram best illustrates the atomic model that Rutherford derived from his gold foil experiment?

Answer

Image with description An orange circle bounded by a heavier, darker orange line surrounds the word Atom.

Image with description A red circle with a large, faint plus sign visible contains 10 small orange circles labeled with minus signs.

Image with description A small orange circle with seven plus signs is at the center of a larger dotted circle. Between the two circles are 7 small green circles, each labeled with a negative sign.

Image with description A small blue circle labeled with a minus sign lies at the center of a larger circle. Spaced around the outer circle are three small green circles labeled with plus signs.

Explanation

Rutherford’s gold foil experiment led to the nuclear model: atoms are mostly empty space, with a small, positively charged nucleus at the center and negatively charged electrons around it. Choice C shows a small positive center with electrons surrounding it. Choice B instead shows electrons embedded in a spread-out positive charge, which represents Thomson’s model.

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