An atom is a particle that consists of a nucleus of protons and neutrons surrounded by an electromagnetically-bound cloud of electrons. The atom is the basic particle of the chemical elements, and the chemical elements are distinguished from each other by the number of protons that are in their atoms. For example, any atom that contains 11 protons is sodium, and any atom that contains 29 protons is copper. The number of neutrons defines the isotope of the element.
Atoms are extremely small, typically around 100 picometers across. A human hair is about a million carbon atoms wide. This is smaller than the shortest wavelength of visible light, which means humans cannot see atoms with conventional microscopes. Atoms are so small that accurately predicting their behavior using classical physics is not possible due to quantum effects.
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