How do Scientists study small objects like molecules and atoms?
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There are so many ways, no ELI5 comment could cover all of them. But here are a few interesting ones.
The geiger-marsden experiment is why we think atoms have nuclei. If you take a really thin sheet of gold (gold foil can be made almost atomically thin), and fire a beam of alpha particles at it, occasionally they will bounce back. This was not the expected result – it suggested a small, concentrated electric charge for the particles to bounce off, which we now call a nucleus.
If you have a molecule and want to weigh it, you can use mass spectroscopy. Typically, this means ionising what you have so that it has a charge, then firing the ions through a magnetic field. The ions will be redirected by the field – but heavier ions will be deflected less.
If you want to actually keep track of individual atoms, you need to used a microscope. Not an optical one that uses light, but a fancy one that uses other means to “see”. One type is electron microscopes – these use electrons instead of light, as electrons can have a shorter wavelength, which allows a higher resolution.
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