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In this sense atoms were the elementary particles of nature. It was in 1803,

more than 2000 years later, when John Dalton (1766-1844) first provided

Atoms: Dalton

´

s Theory

evidence of the existence of atoms by applying chemical methods. In his

theory, Dalton supported the concept that matter is built of indivisible atoms

of different weights.

All atoms of a specific chemical element are in respect of their mass

(weight) and their chemical behaviour identical.

Furthermore, according to Dalton’s theory, atoms have a spherical shape,

are filled homogeneously with matter and follow strictly the laws of classical

mechanics.

Atoms are able to build compounds keeping their proportion to each other

in the form of simple integers. If these compounds decompose the atoms

involved emerge unchanged from this reaction.