3.0 Thomson Model of Atom

  Structure of Atom

• On the basis of his experiments on discharge tubes, Thomson proposed that atoms can be considered as a large positively charged body with a number of small negatively charged electrons scattered throughout it. This model was called as plum pudding model of the atom.
• The electrons represent the plums in the pudding made of positive charge. It is sometimes also called as watermelon model. In this, the juicy pulp of the watermelon represents the positive charge and the seeds represent the electrons.
• Although this model was able to explain the overall neutrality of the atom, but was not consistent with the results of later experiments.