QUANTUM THEORY

AND THE ATOM

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The Nature of Light
The electromagnetic spectrum includes many different types
of radiation.
Visible light accounts for only a small part of the spectrum
Other familiar forms include: radio waves, microwaves, X rays
All forms of light travel in waves
Electromagnetic
Spectrum
Figure 06.01Figure 06.01

Copyright McGraw-Hill 2009 3

DISCOVERY OF THE X RAY AND THE
ELECTRON
 X RAYS WERE DISCOVERED BY
CONRAD WILHELM RÖNTGEN IN
1895.
 Observed x rays emitted by cathode rays
bombarding glass.

 ELECTRONS WERE DISCOVERED BY

J. J. THOMSON IN 1897.
 Observed that cathode rays were charged particles.
OBSERVATION OF X RAYS
 Wilhelm röntgen studied the effects of cathode
rays passing through various materials. He
noticed that a phosphorescent screen near the
tube glowed during some of these experiments.
These rays were unaffected by magnetic fields
and penetrated materials more than cathode
rays.
 He called them x rays and deduced that they
were produced by the cathode rays bombarding
the glass walls of his vacuum tube.
RÖNTGEN’S X RAY TUBE
Röntgen constructed an x-ray tube by allowing cathode rays to
impact the glass wall of the tube and produced x rays. He used x
rays to image the bones of a hand on a phosphorescent screen.
LINE SPECTRA
Chemical elements were observed to produce unique
wavelengths of light when burned or excited in an
electrical discharge.

Emitted light is passed through a diffraction grating

with thousands of lines per ruling and diffracted
according to its wavelength λ by the equation:

where d is the distance of line separation and n is

an integer called the order number.
OPTICAL SPECTROMETER

 Diffraction creates a line spectrum pattern of light bands and dark

areas on the screen.
 The line spectrum serves as a fingerprint of the gas that allows for
unique identification of chemical elements and material composition.
BALMER SERIES
In 1885, Johann Balmer found an empirical
formula for wavelength of the visible hydrogen
line spectra in nm:
nm (where k = 3,4,5…)
Quantum Theory
1900 - Max Planck
Radiant energy could only be emitted or absorbed in discrete
quantities
Quantum: packets of energy
Correlated data from blackbody experiment to his quantum
theory
Revolutionized way of thinking (energy is quantized)
Quantum Theory
Energy of a single quantum of energy

where E  h
E = energy (in Joules)
h = Planck’s constant 6.63 x 1034 J  s
 = frequency
 Photoelectric Effect
Electrons ejected from a metal’s surface when exposed to
light of certain frequency
Einstein proposed that particles of light are really photons
(packets of light energy) and deduced that
Ephoton = h

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Only light with a frequency of photons such that h equals the
energy that binds the electrons in the metal is sufficiently
energetic to eject electrons.
If light of higher frequency is used, electrons will be ejected
and will leave the metal with additional kinetic energy.
• (what is the relationship between energy and frequency?)

Light of at least the threshold frequency and of greater

intensity will eject more electrons.
Photoelectric Effect
Dilemma caused by this theory - is light a wave or particle?
Conclusion: Light must have particle characteristics as well
as wave characteristics
Bohr’s Theory of the
Hydrogen Atom
Planck’s theory along with Einstein’s ideas not only explained
the photoelectric effect, but also made it possible for
scientists to unravel the idea of atomic line spectra
Atomic Line Spectra
Line spectra: emission of light only at specific wavelengths
Every element has a unique emission spectrum
Often referred to as “fingerprints” of the element
Atomic Line Spectra
Bright-line Spectra