Atoms and Empty Space
TLDR: Atoms, the building blocks of all matter, are over 99.9% empty space. Matter feels solid because of the strong electromagnetic forces between atomic particles, particularly the electrons and the nucleus. These forces prevent atoms from collapsing into their empty spaces, creating the illusion of solidity. The structure of matter, including dense materials like rocks, arises from these interactions, not from the volume of particles themselves.
Atoms: Over 99.9% Empty Space, Yet Solid
When we think about the physical world, the objects around us (rocks, tables, the ground beneath our feet) feel solid. The atoms that make up all matter are actually overwhelmingly composed of empty space. This revelation changes how we understand the structure of matter and also forces us to reconsider what "solidity" really means.
The Structure of an Atom
An atom consists of a tiny, dense nucleus at its center, containing protons and neutrons, with electrons orbiting around it in what we call "electron clouds." These electron clouds don't resemble the solid orbits of planets around the Sun and instead exist in probabilistic zones of space where they are likely to be found. Additionally, the space between the nucleus and the electron cloud is gigantic.
Atomic Scale and Empty Space
To give some perspective, if you were to scale up an atom to the size of a football stadium, the nucleus would be no larger than a pea sitting at the center of the field. The electrons would form a diffuse cloud around this nucleus, but the majority of the atom (99.999999999999% of it) is empty space. The distance between the nucleus and the electrons is enormous relative to the tiny size of the nucleus itself. Thus, when you touch a rock or hold a solid object, what you're interacting with is mostly empty space.
Why Doesn’t Matter Collapse?
If atoms are mostly empty, why do objects feel solid and impenetrable? The answer is in the forces that exist at the atomic level, specifically the electromagnetic forces. Electrons, which have a negative charge, are attracted to the positively charged protons in the nucleus. This attraction is balanced by the repulsion between the electrons themselves, creating a stable structure that prevents atoms from collapsing into one another.
These electromagnetic forces are incredibly strong. When two atoms are brought close together, their electron clouds repel each other. This repulsion is why you can press your hand against a rock and feel its surface as solid. Even though the atoms inside the rock are mostly empty space, the forces between their electron clouds create resistance, giving the material its hardness and structure.
Why Rocks Feel Solid
While the structure of an atom is mostly void, the interaction of electrons between atoms is what makes materials feel dense and hard. The electrons of neighboring atoms interact to form chemical bonds (either ionic, covalent, or metallic). These bonds are not just physical connections but are expressions of electromagnetic forces at work.
In a diamond, for example, carbon atoms are covalently bonded in a rigid, three-dimensional lattice. This arrangement makes diamonds incredibly hard, despite the fact that the atoms within the diamond are still mostly empty space. Similarly, in a rock, the atoms are bound together by strong interactions between their electrons, preventing the material from collapsing.
The Pauli Exclusion Principle
Another key factor in the solidity of matter is the Pauli Exclusion Principle. This principle states that no two electrons can occupy the same quantum state simultaneously. As a result, electrons must occupy distinct orbitals, even in tightly packed atoms. This exclusion creates a form of "quantum pressure" that prevents atoms from collapsing into one another, adding to the solidity of matter.
The Quantum World vs. Classical Behavior
At the atomic level, matter follows the non-intuitive rules of quantum mechanics. Electrons behave like both particles and waves, and their exact position can only be described in terms of probabilities. However, as trillions upon trillions of atoms come together to form macroscopic objects like rocks, classical physics takes over. This transition from quantum to classical behavior is driven by a process called decoherence.
Decoherence and the Classical World
Decoherence occurs when quantum systems interact with their environment, causing their quantum properties to "collapse" into classical ones. For an object as large as a rock, the vast number of particles interacting with one another and with external factors such as air molecules or light causes the system to behave in a predictable, classical manner. In other words, while the components of the rock are governed by quantum mechanics, the rock itself behaves as a solid, stable object because its quantum properties have been smoothed out by decoherence.
Conclusion
The fact that atoms are composed of over 99.9% empty space might seem counterintuitive given the solidity of the objects we interact with daily. However, the forces between atomic particles (particularly the electromagnetic forces between electrons) are what give matter its structure, hardness, and density. Despite the emptiness inside atoms, these forces create the illusion of solidity. Whether it's a rock, a diamond, or a human body, the material world is mostly empty space, held together by the invisible forces that govern atomic interactions.
In the end, the universe is not as solid as it seems. Our perception of reality, shaped by the forces of nature, is largely an illusion created by the electromagnetic interactions between particles—revealing a world where emptiness dominates, but structure persists.
Reflecting Thoughts
Consciousness impact on the physical world around us:
In my The Effect of Consciousness on Science post, we explored how consciousness may impact the world around us. If atoms, which make up all matter, are over 99.99% empty space and composed of subatomic particles that can be influenced by observation, it raises an intriguing question: Does our consciousness have an influence on the physical world?
Given that quantum particles respond to observation, could it be possible that our awareness affects the structure and behavior of the physical things around us? This idea invites reflection on the deeper connection between consciousness and reality, suggesting that the role of the observer may be more profound than we currently understand.
EMF impact on our atoms:
Since our atoms are over 99.99% empty space and are held together by electromagnetic forces, how do non-native EMFs from our environment affect the natural EMFs that stabilize our atoms? Additionally, how do these external EMFs influence the electromagnetic forces that regulate essential biological processes?