Rutherford's gold foil experiment challenged Thomson's model by revealing the atom's nucleus and proposed a new model highlighting the structure of atoms.
Rutherford's observations challenged Thomson's Model of the atom by demonstrating through the famous gold foil experiment that the atom has a small, high-mass nucleus surrounded by electrons, contrary to Thomson's model of a uniformly distributed positive charge. The experiment showed that a small fraction of alpha particles were deflected at large angles, indicating a concentrated positive charge at the center of the atom.
Rutherford's findings led to the development of the Rutherford model of the atom, wherein electrons orbit a positively charged nucleus, resembling a mini solar system. This model revolutionized the understanding of atomic structure and paved the way for further advancements in atomic theory and quantum mechanics.
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