Question

A neutral atom is known to have a nucleus with a positive charge of 2.4 x10-12 C. How many electrons does the atom have?

Answer 1

If the atom is neutral, it means that there are the same number of electrons and protons. Then, the number of electrons of the atom is 2.4*10^-12 C.

The number of electrons is obtained by using the following equivalence:

1C = 6.24*10^18 e

Then, you have:

`2.4\cdot10^(-12)C\cdot(6.24\cdot10^(18)e)/(1C)\approx1.5\cdot10^7e`

Hence, there are approximately 1.5*10^7 electrons in the neutral atom