Atoms are the building blocks of matter. All matter can be broken down into molecules, and all molecules can be broken down into elements. Molecules are groups of atoms and elements are individual atoms. Elements are the smallest recognizable components of matter.
Atoms can be broken down into three types of particles, each with a specific electrical charge: negatively charged electrons, positively charged protons, and neutrons which are without charge.
The popular conception of the atom is a tiny nucleus of protons and neutrons "orbited" by electrons circling the nucleus at a distance of a thousand times the nuclear diameter. This is a very simplified version of the truth.
The number of protons in an atom is called the atomic number, and determines the chemical element of the atom.
The number of neutrons in an atom is called the atomic weight, as this determines the heaviness of the element. This quantity is slightly variable within the atom and this variance determines the "isotope" of the atom.
The number of electrons in an atom is approximately equal to the number of protons. This quantity is more highly variable and determines the chemical bonding properties of the atom.
Electrons in the atom are arranged in groups called shells and sub-shells. These shells represent levels of energy. Electrons can jump between shells as their energy level changes, and each level of energy is specific and not variable. These levels are referred to as quantum states, as an electron must change directly from one energy level to another in order to jump from one shell to another.
There are two further properties that make up the quantum state of an electron. These are the direction of spin and the angular momentum of the electron. There is a natural law that no two electrons can exist in the same quantum state within the same atom. That is, no two electrons in the same shell can have the same spin and angular momentum. This limits the number of electrons in each shell and sub-shell, and is the basis of electrical interactions that determine the chemical bonding properties of the elements.
Nuclear structure has not been as thoroughly explored. However, there is a current theory which postulates that atomic particles are made up of smaller particles called quarks. Unlike atomic particles, quarks have never been isolated or viewed. Micronuclear physics does not agree with this theory.
Micronuclear physics forwards and extends the basic theories behind Quantum Mechanics, that atomic particles are composed of energy waves. And energy is motion.
Modern energy production techniques all use atomic properties. The transmission of electricity is of course done with electrons, but to create the energy nuclear power plants use reactions within the atomic nucleus, under tightly controlled conditions, to generate heat.
Above simple mechanical work, the lowest level of energy creation is by chemical reaction. As chemical reactions are the recombination of elements that occur through the swapping of electrons, it can be said that all methods of chemical energy production use some sort of atomic reaction. The shattering of interatomic bonds is what either creates a transmittable energy or converts mechanical energy into a transmittable energy.
Burning wood, coal, oil and gas use fire as a chemical reaction. Dams use turbines to convert motion into electricity, which is a flow of electrons through a conductor. Solar panels convert heat into electricity. The energy output from a chemical reaction is in the form of infrared, visible and sometimes ultraviolet light, a narrow band of the EM spectrum.
The next highest level is by nuclear reaction. This involves breaking the nuclear bonds of atoms, rearranging the nuclear structure by splitting it apart and, on a higher level, by fusing it back together again. Nuclear reactors use radioactive elements to generate heat.
Radioactive elements are the heaviest elements in nature, having the largest number of protons and neutrons. In these elements the nucleus has a natural tendency to break down by emitting neutrons (which is why they are called radioactive) until the atom becomes unstable, and this then causes the element to change by splitting into two lighter elements. This process does not stop until a stable non-radioactive element has been reached.
For example, a mass of the radioactive element Uranium left alone will eventually turn into Lead over a period of millions of years. As another example, in an atomic bomb a mass of Uranium is converted into Hydrogen within seconds.
The energy output from high yield atomic reactions extends all the way from radio waves up the spectrum to high energy gamma rays. The energy yield becomes discontinuous above the highest energy X-radiation. That is to say that at frequencies higher than that of the electron, the output assumes particle form by emitting energy in the form of individual particles rather than continuous wave output.
There is only one type of reaction above this, that of total conversion of atomic particles to energy. This can only be accomplished by a complete annihilation of substance in a matter-antimatter reaction.
The key to all of this is that the closer you get to the nucleus of the atom, and to breaking it down into smaller pieces, the more energy you get out of the reaction. You could list a hierarchy of energy production reactions, each about 10,000 times as powerful as the one below it!
The last one, antimatter, is the total conversion of matter to energy. This is also called total annihilation. This has been the subject of much speculation and science fiction. In fact, most of the civilized world knows that the Starship Enterprise uses Antimatter as a fuel source.
What is antimatter? First a simple explanation. It is the opposite of matter. It is matter made up of positively charged electrons (called antielectrons or positrons), negatively charged protons (called antiprotons), and neutrons (called antineutrons).
The idea behind this is that if you combine an electron and a positron, you get a reaction that creates energy with no mass left over, and likewise with the proton and antiproton.
The difference between this reaction and a nuclear reaction is that in a nuclear reaction you have mass left over. In fact every proton and neutron that went into the reaction comes out of the reaction either in the form of lighter elements or "free" unattached neutrons.
A nuclear reaction that splits atoms apart is called "fission". In a fission reaction free neutrons are produced in large quantities and these particles alone actually are what is known as atomic radiation. Neutrons fly through living tissue at high speed like tiny bullets breaking apart the delicate cellular structure. In sufficient quantity they will destroy the body's chemistry to the point where it cannot repair itself. This is the purpose of the "neutron bomb", to kill the people while saving the real estate for the victors.
Anyway, in an atomic fission reaction the energy conversion comes from the change of elements. Energy is released out of the "binding force" that is set free when a larger element breaks down into smaller ones.
An atomic fusion reaction is similar. Smaller elements combine to form heavier elements. Still, binding force is released as the heavier elements have less total binding force holding them together. That is, fusion is not quite the opposite of fission. With fusion it takes more small elements to fuse into the large elements, whereas in a fission reaction you get less small elements out of the large elements.
In the antimatter reaction, all matter is converted to energy. Pairs of electrons and positrons, protons and antiprotons, neutrons and antineutrons annihilate each other, releasing energy in the proportion given in Einstein's famous equation "E=mc2".*
Antimatter has not been found to occur naturally in this universe, but it can be and is at this time manufactured in particle accelerators. The drawback is that current techniques are very crude and it takes far more energy to create antimatter than is released in a matter-antimatter annihilation. The justification for this is that once antimatter is created and contained, it can be transported as high energy and very lightweight source for space travel. That is, as soon as antimatter engines come to be.
The existence of anti-particles was first postulated back around 1930 when the first bubble chamber experiments were going on. High energy particles colliding with ordinary matter produced unexplainable reactions. These were tracked down and the existence of antimatter was verified.
Today, antimatter is produced and stored on a regular basis, and even though antiprotons and antielectrons are actually being created and stored by the billions, this still only adds up to quantities on the order of 10-15 grams. On the timetable of current technological projections, it will be another 100 years before antimatter can be produced in quantities that are practical and useful.
What if antimatter were easy to make and was a common energy source? Someday it may be, but along the lines of current work, that day is far away. But what would have to be different for this to happen in the near future, and what would atomic theory have to say?
In order to answer this question, we must first take a closer look at the atom and at what it is, how it works.
This includes both internal structure and energy phenomena.
I will start with electron energy.