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What is the typical diameter of a atom?

1) 1.0×10-10m
2) 1.0×10-9m
3) 1.0×10-8m
4) 1.0×10-7m

User Sumshyftw
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1 Answer

2 votes

Final answer:

The typical diameter of an atom is around 1.0×10-10m or 1 angstrom. This measurement serves to provide a scale for the size of atoms, which are much larger than their nuclei.

So option (1) is correct.

Step-by-step explanation:

The typical diameter of an atom is approximately 1.0×10-10m, which is 100 picometers, or alternatively stated as 1 angstrom (1 Å). This is the order of magnitude for atomic diameters. It's important to understand that while these dimensions can vary slightly depending on the type of atom, the diameter of a typical atom is much larger than the diameter of the nucleus within it, which is on the order of 10-15 m for lighter nuclei and roughly 10–14 m for a medium-sized nucleus. To put these scales into perspective, if we were to scale up an atom so that its nucleus was 1 meter in diameter, the nearest electron would be very far away in comparison due to the vast difference in scale between the nucleus and the atom.

User Nheid
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