Question

Given that the radius of the helium-4 nucleus is approximately 2.6 fm, the classical electron radius is 2.8 fm, and the calculated atomic radius of 4He is 31 pm, calculate the percentage of the space in a helium-4 atom that is actually occupied by the particles.

Answer 1

0.026%

Step-by-step explanation:

The Helium-4 is the isotope of the helium that has a mass equal to 4. The element has 2 electrons, so, the total radius of the electrons is 2*2.8 = 5.6 fm = 0.0056 pm.

So, the total radius of the particles is 0.0056 + 0.0026 = 0.0082 pm.

The percentage of the space that the particles occupy is the radius of them divided by the radius of the atom:

% = 0.0082/31 *100%

% = 0.026%

* 1 fentometer (fm) = 0.001 picometer (pm)