| Themes > Science > Chemistry > General Chemistry > Atomic Structure > Electronic Structures of Atoms > The Electron and its properties > The Electron as a wave |
Confine an electron, or constrict its freedom of movement and the bullet looks like a wave. Think of an atom - say hydrogen. The electron orbits the nucleus; in the case of hydrogen the nucleus is a single proton. Instead of a neat circular orbit the electron flies around the proton appearing at all points almost simultaneously. It behaves like a wave. If we bring two atoms close together their electron clouds may merge. If the electron clouds merge we get a molecule. In metals the electron waves spread out over the whole volume of the material. |
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