He proposed the nuclear atom as the result of the gold-foil experiment in 1911. The gold-foil experiment consisted of him firing alpha particles through gold-foil. Most of the particles went through unhindered. But a few particles ricocheted back. Rutherford concluded that those particles must have run into something with a bigger mass and an opposite charge. So Rutherford proposed that all of the positive charge and all of the mass of the atom occupied a small volume at the center of the atom. He also said that most of the volume of the atom was empty space occupied by the electrons. Also in 1920, Rutherford proposed the existence of the third atomic particle, the neutron.
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His gold foil experiment was revolutionary. He had detectors that showed where the alpha particles ended up all around the foil.
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Rutherford spend many hours testing theories and drawing conclusions.
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