How many times is an atom bigger than the nucleus ?

Options

A. 100000
B. 5000
C. 10000
D. 200

Answer

To determine how many times an atom is bigger than its nucleus, we can follow these steps:

### Step-by-Step Solution:

1. **Understanding the Structure of an Atom**:
- An atom consists of a nucleus at its center, which contains protons and neutrons.
- Electrons orbit around the nucleus in defined energy levels or shells.

2. **Mass Distribution**:
- The nucleus contains approximately 99% of the atom's total mass, making it very dense compared to the overall size of the atom.

3. **Size Comparison**:
- The size of an atom is typically measured in picometers (pm), while the size of a nucleus is measured in femtometers (fm).
- 1 picometer (pm) = 1,000 femtometers (fm).

4. **Approximate Sizes**:
- The average radius of an atom is about 100 picometers (pm).
- The average radius of a nucleus is about 5 femtometers (fm).

5. **Calculating the Size Ratio**:
- Convert the sizes to the same unit for comparison:
- Size of nucleus = 5 fm = 0.005 pm.
- Size of atom = 100 pm.
- Now, we can find how many times the size of the atom is larger than the size of the nucleus:
\[ \text{Size Ratio} = \frac{\text{Size of Atom}}{\text{Size of Nucleus}} = \frac{100 \text{ pm}}{0.005 \text{ pm}} = 20,000. \]

6. **Conclusion**:
- Therefore, an atom is approximately 20,000 times bigger than its nucleus.

### Final Answer:
An atom is approximately **20,000 times** bigger than the nucleus.

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