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FIJI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering Science & Technology
School of Sciences, Department of Physics

PHY704 Quantum Mechanics and Atomic Physics

Assignment on Structure of Atom
1. Find the distance of closest approach of an 8.0-MeV alpha particle incident on a gold
foil.

2. The series limit of the Paschen series (n0 = 3) is 820.1 nm. What are the three longest
wavelengths of the Paschen series?

3. Protons are incident on a copper foil 12μm thick. (a) What should the proton kinetic
energy be in order that the distance of closest approach equal the nuclear radius (5.0 fm)?
(b) If the proton energy were 7.5 MeV, what is the impact parameter for scattering at
120◦? (c) What is the minimum distance between proton and nucleus for this case?
(d) What fraction of the protons is scattered beyond 120◦?

4. The shortest wavelength of the hydrogen Lyman series is 91.13 nm. Find the three
longest wavelengths in this series.

5. An electron is in the n = 5 state of hydrogen. To what states can the electron make
transitions, and what are the energies of the emitted radiations?

6. An alternative development of the Bohr theory begins by assuming that the stationary
states are those for which the circumference of the orbit is an integral number of de
Broglie wavelengths. (a) Show that this condition leads to standing de Broglie waves
around the orbit. (b) Show that this condition gives the angular momentum condition
used in the Bohr theory.

7. A hypothetical atom has only two excited states, at 4.0 and 7.0 eV, and has a ground-state
ionization energy of 9.0 eV. If we used a vapor of such atoms for the Franck-Hertz
experiment, for what voltages would we expect to see decreases in the current? List all
voltages up to 20 V.
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8. Compare the frequency of revolution of an electron with the frequency of the photons
emitted in transitions from n to n −1 for (a) n = 10; (b) n = 100; (c) n = 1000; (d) n =
10,000.

9. What is the difference in wavelength between the first line of the Balmer series in ordinary
hydrogen (M = 1.007825 u) and in “heavy” hydrogen (M = 2.014102 u)?