J.J. Thomson contributed an invaluable information to the field of science. In 1894, Thomson’s research commenced. He focused his attention to the study of cathode rays. Cathode rays are beams of electrons (negative electrical charges) that come from the cathode of a high-vacuum tube. Thomson had equipment that was considered very high-tech. It was much more advanced than what others at the time were using. From his experiments with cathode rays, Thomson was able to figure out that atoms are made up of smaller particles. He called them corpuscles. Corpuscles are now known as electrons. Up until this point, the atom was believed to be the smallest particle. Thomson’s research changed the way that physicists and chemists looked at atomic structure. …show more content…
Each plate was coated with a different substance. One plate was positively charged, while the other was negatively charged. When he bounced a beam of light from one plate to another and it was deflected toward the positive plate, Thomson could tell that the beam was negatively charged. Once Thomson discovered the corpuscle (electron), he figured out that all atoms have electrons and that all electrons are alike. He noted that they were the same weight and size. Later, Thomson looked at positively charged ions. He began this work in 1906, when he hypothesized that each negative charge, an atom must have a positive charge. His model of the atom was known as the “Plum Pudding Model.” This model recognized that atoms had a specific round shape with positively and negatively charged particles inside. He thought that the positive and negative charges were equal, and as a result believed that atoms were electrically neutral. He wasn’t able to figure out exactly where the charges were located within the atom. That discovery would come later by one of his students. However, in 1912, he did determine that neon was made up of two types of atoms. This work led to the discovery of