Plum pudding model

The Plum pudding model of the atom was made after the discovery of the electron but before the discovery of the proton or neutron. In it, the atom is envisioned as electrons surrounded by a soup of positive charge, like plums surrounded by pudding. This model was disproved by an experiment by Ernest Rutherford, the gold foil experiment, when he discovered the nucleus of the atom.

This model can be compared to a British treat called plum pudding, hence the name.

See also: atom, plum pudding