Simulate Experiment:
Rutherford’s Experiment
Rutherford and his associates conducted many experiments—initially to study
radioactive decay and later to apply their knowledge and technology to the study of the
nature of the atom. Rutherford’s brilliantly recognized that, by studying how small,
charged particles (like alpha and beta particles) scattered as they passed through an
atom, he could provide some evidence for the internal structure of the atom. This
scattering design has been used many times in modern physics, including the
experiment providing the first evidence for quarks.
Problem
How does the angle of alpha particles scattered by a thin gold foil relate to the
scintillation rate?
Use the Rutherford’s Experiment applet to simulate a scattering experiment and
complete the Purpose, Prediction, Design, Procedure, Evidence, Analysis and
Evaluation sections of a lab report (see a description of these lab report sections at the
CRYSTAL-Alberta site).
 In the Prediction section, include your reasoning and a sketch of the main
apparatus (from the applet) showing the predicted result, including approximate
angles.
 In the Analysis section, choose some numerical or graphical analysis to
communicate the results. For example, determine the approximate integer
number of scattered particles per 10x of incident particles for each angle or
construct a graph of log(scintillation rate) vs angle.