Question

Statement: Rutherford’s atomic model was a great improvement over the previous models, but later discarded

Reason: Rutherford’s atomic model failed to explain the stability of electrons in a circular path.

Which of the following holds true?

• A.
  Both Statement and Reason are true and Reason is the correct explanation for Statement.
  
• B.
  Both Statement and Reason are true but Reason is not the correct explanation for Statement.
  
• C.
  Only Reason is true but the Statement is false.
  
• D. Only Statement is true but the Reason is false.

Answer 1

The correct option is A

Both Statement and Reason are true and Reason is the correct explanation for Statement.

The alpha particle scattering experiment on gold foil proved that the positive charge of the atom is concentrated in a tiny volume at the centre of the atom. This disproved Thomson’s model.
Rutherford also proposed that electrons revolve around the nucleus as the planets revolve around the Sun.
However, when a charged particle revolves around another charged body, it continuously emits energy. Thus, the electron should lose energy and eventually collapse into the nucleus. But, this is not the case. Rather, an atom is quite stable. Hence, Rutherford’s atomic model failed to explain the stability of electrons in a circular path and was discarded.