Rutherford selected gold foil because he wanted the thinnest possible layer to increase the likelihood of interactions between the alpha particles and the atoms in the foil.
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Rutherford selected gold foil because he wanted the thinnest possible layer to increase the likelihood of interactions between the alpha particles and the atoms in the foil.
Rutherford chose gold foil for its malleability, allowing him to create extremely thin sheets. Gold’s atomic structure made it ideal for testing the proposed model of the atom due to its high density and ability to reflect alpha particles effectively.