Question

Suppose you made up your own ‘atom’, as Thomson described, using clay for the positive charge and small beads for the electrons spread through it. What will happen if by mistake, the clay itself carries a bit of negative charge? Would your model still represent a neutral atom?

Answer 1

No, the model would not represent a neutral atom. The clay carrying a negative charge would add to the negative charge of the beads, so the total negative charge would be greater than the positive charge. The net charge would be negative, so the atom would not be neutral.