Question

If number of electrons in an atom is 8 and number of protons is also 8, then ​

(i) What is the atomic number of the atom?
(ii) What is the charge on the atom?

Answer 1

(i)

For a neutral atom,​

Atomic number = Number of protons = number of electrons in a neutral atom​

Here, the number of protons = number of electrons = 8.​

Thus, the atomic number of the atom (with 8 electrons and 8 protons) is 8.

(ii)
The charge on the atom would be 0 (neutral) because the number of electrons and protons are equal i.e., 8. The charges on electron and proton have the same magnitude but carry opposite charge. Hence, they neutralize each others effect making the atom neutral overall.​