Question

What is the difference between the smallest particle of an element and the smallest particle of a compound?

Answer 1

The smallest particle of an element is an atom whereas the smallest particle of a compound is a molecule. The difference between an atom and a molecule is that the atom is the smallest unit of an element, which may or may not exist independently whereas a molecule is formed when two or more similar or different types of atoms are joined chemically. e.g. 'O', 'H', and 'C', etc are atoms but O₂, H₂, and CO_2, etc are molecules.