The radius of an atom of tungsten (W) is about 2.10 A . (b) How many tungsten atoms would have to be lined up to create a wire of 2.0 mm?

Key Concepts

Atomic Radius

The atomic radius is a measure of the size of an atom, typically defined as the distance from the nucleus to the outermost electron shell. For tungsten (W), the atomic radius is approximately 2.10 angstroms (A), which is equivalent to 2.10 x 10^-10 meters. Understanding atomic radius is crucial for calculating how many atoms can fit into a given length.

Unit Conversion

Unit conversion is the process of converting a quantity expressed in one unit to another unit. In this problem, we need to convert the length of the wire from millimeters (mm) to angstroms (A) to match the units of the atomic radius. This involves using conversion factors, where 1 mm equals 10^10 A, allowing for accurate calculations of the number of atoms in the wire.

Avogadro's Number

Avogadro's number (approximately 6.022 x 10^23) is the number of atoms, ions, or molecules in one mole of a substance. While not directly needed for this specific calculation, understanding Avogadro's number is essential in chemistry for relating macroscopic measurements to atomic-scale quantities, especially when dealing with large numbers of atoms in calculations.