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Question

Which statement best describes the nucleus according to Rutherford's model?

This question was previously asked in
RRB Group D 2025 Question Paper (9-Aug-2026) (Shift 1)
The correct answer is

The nucleus is small, dense, and positively charged.

In Rutherford's alpha-particle scattering, positively charged alpha particles were fired at a thin gold foil and their deflections were recorded on a fluorescent screen.

Most particles passed straight through, showing that an atom is largely empty space, but a very small fraction were deflected through large angles and a few even bounced almost straight back.

Such large-angle scattering can only occur when a fast, positive particle meets a tiny region carrying almost all the atomic mass and a concentrated positive charge, which repels it strongly.

Rutherford therefore proposed that every atom has a small, dense, positively charged core called the nucleus, with electrons revolving around it in the surrounding empty space.

Hence, the nucleus in Rutherford's model is best described as small, dense, and positively charged.

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Important Questions from Structure of Atom

  1. According to Bohr's model, electromagnetic radiations possess dual character properties behaving like:
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