Re: Protons & electrons attractions
- From: Llanzlan Klazmon <Klazmon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: 21 Apr 2005 17:18:16 +1200
"Watclod" <wateryclouds9@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in
news:1114040516.737318.306000@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:
>
> Can anyone give the best descriptions or layman explanations
> why electrons don't fall into the protons.
>
When the Bohr model of the atom was proposed, i.e electrons in orbit
about a compact nucleus, this was one of the first questions raised. A
charged particle travelling in an orbit would be expected to emit
radiation until it did finally combine with the nucleus. In reality it
was observed that the radiation is only emitted in discrete lumps until
the electron has a certain energy called the ground state, which is
stable. Why is this so? Well that's just the way that nature works. The
physicists last century came up with an explanation known as quantum
mechanics. The famous physicist Richard Feynman put into book form a
series of lectures called 'The Feyman Lectures on Physics'. He gives a
good intro to quantum mechanics in vol III. It's not too hard to follow
if you can handle a bit of calculus - the lectures are addressed to
undergradute level.
> I heard it has something to do with angular momentum. But
> if you can put a steady electron near the nucleus. Why
> won't the proton just attracts it?
Well in classical physics, angular momentum would keep the electron in
orbit except for the problem of an accellerating charge radiating energy
according to electro magnetic theory as mentioned above.
>
> One stated that it's because the electron never runs out
> of energy. But even with energy packed electron. Can't
> it just bind with the protons and distribute the energy
> there.
Well it is actually possible for an electron to combine with a nucleus.
This is considered as a type of radioactive decay as it involves a
nuclear reaction mediated by the so called weak nuclear force. In rough
effect an inner shell electron combines with a nuclear proton to form a
neutron. This happens spontaneously with certain types of atoms. google
'electron capture'.
>
> Some say the electron is just a wave that's why it doesn't
> fall to the nucleus sorta the wave bouncing up and down
> it.
>
Erwin Schrodinger came up with a wave equation which gives a very good
description of the actual behaviour of electrons as long as relativistic
effects can be ignored. It just means that the phenomena which is called
an electron has aspects to its' behaviour which are very well described
by wave mechanics. It is a mistake to think of it purely in terms of a
macroscopic object such as a baseball.
> In your own words, pls. describe why electrons don't
> fall into protons. One that I can use to describe to high
> school students or pure layman.
>
Well we don't know if the world could be any other way than how it
actually is. The job of science is to figure out how it works and
sometimes that is not what we would expect from our everyday experience.
Klazmon.
> Thanks.
>
> Watclod
>
.
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