Topic 1.1 Atomic Structure

return to AS and A2 chemistry

1.1a Recall the simple model of an atom in terms of electrons, protons and neutrons
1.1b
Recall the definition of relative isotopic, relative atomic, and relative molecular masses and understand that they are measured on a scale in which 12 C = 12 exactly
1.1c
Understand the relationships between the numbers of protons and neutrons in an atom and its atomic number, mass number and relative isotopic mass.
1.1d
Recall the existence of isotopes and their relevance to the relative atomic mass of an atom.
1.1e
Understand the principles and use of the low-resolution mass spectrometer to determine relative atomic mass; interpret mass spectrometric data to make simple deductions 
(i) concerning the isotopic composition of a sample of an element
(ii) to calculate its relative atomic mass
(iii) to deduce the relative molecular mass and fragmentation patterns of simple molecules.
1.1f
Recall the definitions of first and successive ionisation energies
1.1g
Understand that successive ionisation energies provide evidence for the existence of quantum shells
· limited to the first twenty elements
· data may be provided in graphic or tabular form
1.1h
Understand that first ionisation energies of successive elements provides evidence for the existence of characteristic energy levels of s, p and d orbitals
· The hydrogen spectrum will not be examined
1.1i
Understand the terms s, p and d-block elements
· the distinction between a d-block element and a transition element will not be required until topic 5.2
1.1j
Predict the electronic configuration of isolated atoms of the elements from hydrogen to krypton inclusive (using 1s, 2p, ... notation and electrons-in-boxes notations) using the building-up principle
1.1k
Understand that electronic structure determines the chemical properties of an element
1.1l
Define first and second electron affinities and understand that the second electron affinity is endothermic.