From your everyday experiences, you know that matter exists in three states -solid, liquid, and
gas. The fourth state of matter is plasma. A fifth state of matter is the Bose-Einstein
Condensate. They will be discussed separately.
A solid has a definite volume and a definite shape. Its particles are held together in fixed
positions and their motion is restricted.
Most solids expand very slightly when heated. This property makes solids such as wood, iron,
and cement suitable as construction materials.
A liquid has a fixed volume but does not have a fixed shape.
It takes the shape of the container it occupies. Its particles are free to move because they are
held together less tightly than those of a solid.
Liquids are very slightly compressible. If hydraulic fluids are compressible, the pressure
exerted by a driver's foot on a brake pedal
would result in compressing the brake fluid rather than causing the brakes to exert pressure
and stop the car.
A gas has neither a fixed volume nor shape because its particles are far apart and have
complete freedom of motion to assume the shape of a closed container and fill its entire
volume. Gases are highly compressible. Under increased pressure, the volume of a gas
decreases. This compressibility allows a large quantity of oxygen to be stored in small
cylinders such as those used in hospitals.
The Nature of Matter
Solid and liquid particles have strong forces of attraction between them, so they cling or group
together. Thus, they are visible. In gases, the attractive forces between the particles are
negligible, so they are far apart. The tiny gas particles do not sufficiently reflect light so we do
not see them.
The particles that you see in a beam of light are usually dust particles that are being bumped
and moved by moving air particles.
In chapter 2, you learned that kinetic energy is the energy of motion.
The movement of the tiny particles in matter is due to the kinetic energy of the particles. The
particles of air have kinetic energy.
States of Matter
The kinetic particle theory states that matter is made of tiny particles that are in constant,
random motion. We will use the kinetic particle theory to describe the states of matter, their
properties, and the changes undergo.
The Solid State
The particles of a solid are closely packed in an orderly manner (Figure 9.2). According to the
kinetic particle theory, these particles are held together by very strong attractive forces. The
particles cannot move freely. Their kinetic energy is just enough for them to vibrate and rotate
in their fixed positions. This explains the definite shape and volume of a solid. The very close
packing of the particles in a solid also explains why it has a high density and can only be very
slightly compressed.
The Liquid State
The particles of a liquid are loosely packed together. There are spaces between them because
the forces of attraction that hold the particles together are weaker than those in a solid.
The particles in a liquid are not held
Figure 9.3. The particles of a
in fixed positions. They can move freely liquid are loosely packed. by sliding over one another.
This disorderly arrangement explains why a liquid does not have a definite shape. However, it
has a definite volume.
The kinetic energy of the particles of a liquid is higher than that of a solid. There are more
spaces between the liquid particles than between the solid particles. This explains why a
liquid can be slightly compressed and has a lower density compared to a solid.
The Gaseous State
The particles of a gas are far apart. This is due to the very weak force of attraction between
the particles.
Gas particles are not held in fixed positions because they have a lot of kinetic energy. The
particles move rapidly and randomly in all directions. Thus, a gas has no definite shape but
takes the shape of its container.
Gas particles occupy more space than solid and liquid particles do. This explains why a gas
fills the entire volume of a container and has low density. The big spaces between gas
particles make it possible for the gas to be easily compressed (Figure 9.5). When pressure is
applied to an inflated balloon, the particles move close together.
Plasma: The Fourth State of Matter
Plasma is a gaseous state of matter in which a part or all of the atoms or molecules are
stripped off of electrons forming positive ions and negative electrons. A gaseous mixture of
positive ions and electrons characterizes the fourth state of matter. Plasma is the most
common form of matter in the universe but the least common on Earth. The Sun and the other
stars are composed of plasma.
Partial plasma can be created by applying an electric field to a low pressure gas as in neon or
fluorescent light tubes, lightning bolts, welding arcs, and fireballs from nuclear explosions.
When electrical current heats the electrode in a light tube, electrons from the electrode
collide with the atoms of argon gas. Argon becomes ionized and as more ions are formed, they
also ionize the mercury atoms, forming plasma.
Auroras are atmospheric disturbances caused by the presence of low density plasma. Auroras
are green and red flames of light stretching across the sky. An aurora that occurs in the
Earth's Northern Hemisphere is called aurora borealis or Northern Light. Aurora australis or
Southern Light occurs in the Southern Hemisphere.
Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC)
Scientists believe that there is a fifth state of matter, the Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC).
The name is derived from the names of Albert Einstein and Satyendra Nath Bose who
predicted the BEC in 1924. In a BEC, matter stops behaving as independent particles. It
collapses into a single quantum state that can be described with a single, uniform wave
function. In 1995, the team of Eric Cornell and Carl Wieman of the University of Colorado at
Boulder, produced the first condensate experimentally. This condensate is "colder" than a
solid. The Bose-Einstein condensate
may occur when atoms have very similar (or the same quantum levels, at temperatures very
close to absolute zero (-273.15°C).
Scientists use BEC as "quantum simulator" to investigate subatomic particles that have been
predicted to exist but are too difficult to create or observe directly.
