Course No.

PHY- 2251 (B), Physics – IV, Mathematics Discipline, Khulna University

Chapter 8
Atom Model

Md. Shohel Parvez

Lecturer
Physics Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna
Bhor Atom Model:
In atomic physics, the Rutherford–Bohr model or Bohr model or Bohr
diagram, introduced by Niels Bohr and Ernest Rutherford in 1913,
depicts the atom as a small, positively charged nucleus surrounded by
electrons that travel in circular orbits around the nucleus—similar to
structure of the Solar System, but with attraction provided by
electrostatic forces rather than gravity. After the cubic model (1902),
the plum-pudding model (1904), the Saturnian model (1904), and the
Rutherford model (1911) came the Rutherford–Bohr model or just
Bohr model for short (1913).
In the early 20th century, experiments by Ernest Rutherford
established that atoms consisted of a diffuse cloud of negatively
charged electrons surrounding a small, dense, positively charged
nucleus. Given this experimental data, Rutherford naturally
considered a planetary-model atom, the Rutherford model of 1911 –
electrons orbiting a solar nucleus – however, said planetary-model
atom has a technical difficulty. The laws of classical mechanics (i.e.
the Larmor formula), predict that the electron will release
electromagnetic radiation while orbiting a nucleus. Because the
electron would lose energy, it would rapidly spiral inwards, collapsing
into the nucleus on a timescale of around 16 picoseconds. This atom
model is disastrous, because it predicts that all atoms are unstable.
To overcome this difficulty, Niels Bohr proposed, in 1913, what is
now called the Bohr model of the atom. He suggested that electrons
could only have certain classical motions:
1. Electrons in atoms orbit the nucleus.
2. The electrons can only orbit stably, without radiating, in certain
orbits (called by Bohr the "stationary orbits") at a certain discrete set
of distances from the nucleus. These orbits are associated with
definite energies and are also called energy shells or energy levels.
In these orbits, the electron's acceleration does not result in radiation
and energy loss as required by classical electromagnetics.
3. Electrons can only gain and lose energy by jumping from one
allowed orbit to another, absorbing or emitting electromagnetic
radiation with a frequency ν determined by the energy difference of
the levels according to the Planck relation:
Δ E = 𝐸2 − 𝐸1 = h ν
where h is Planck's constant.
it is the reciprocal of the classical orbit period:
ν = 1 /T
L = n h /2 π = n ℏ
where n = 1, 2, 3, ... is called the principal quantum number, and ħ =
h/2π. The lowest value of n is 1; this gives a smallest possible orbital
radius of 0.0529 nm known as the Bohr radius. Once an electron is in
this lowest orbit, it can get no closer to the proton. Starting from the
angular momentum quantum rule, Bohr was able to calculate the
energies of the allowed orbits of the hydrogen atom and other hydrogen-
like atoms and ions.
Spectral series of 𝑯𝟐 atom:
The ability of the Bohr theory to explain the origin of spectral lines
is among its most spectacular accomplishments, and so it is appropriate
to preface our exposition of the theory itself with a look at atomic
spectra.
We know that heated solids emit radiation in which all wavelengths
are present, through with different intensities.
Also the atoms or molecules in a rarefied gas are so far apart on the
average that their only mutual interactions occur during occasional
collisions. Under these circumstances we would expect any emitted
radiation to be characteristic of the individual atoms or molecules
present, an expectation that is realized experimentally.
When an atomic gas or vapor at somewhat less than atmospheric
pressure is suitably ―excited‖ usually by passage of an electric current
through it, the emitted radiation has a spectrum which contains certain
discrete wavelengths only, they are called emission line spectra.
When white light is passed through a gas, it is found to absorb light
of certain of the wavelengths present in its emission spectra. The
resulting absorption line spectrum consists of a bright background
crossed by dark lines corresponding to the missing wavelengths;
emission spectra consist of bright lines on a dark background. The dark
Fraun-hofer lines in the solar spectrum occur because the luminous part
of the sun, which radiates almost exactly according to theoretical
predictions for any object heated to 5800°𝑘 is surrounded by an envelope
Of cooler gas which absorbs light of certain wavelengths only.
In the later part of nineteenth century it was discovered that the
wavelengths present in atomic spectra fall into definite sets called
spectral series. The wavelengths in each series can be specified by a
simple epical formula, with remarkable similarity among the formulas
for the various series that comprise the complete spectrum of an element.
The first such spectral series was found by J. J. Balmer in 1885 in the
course of a study of the visible part of the hydrogen spectrum. The line
with the longest wavelength, 6563 A, is designated 𝐻𝛼 the next whose
wavelengths is 4863 A, is designated 𝐻𝛽 and so on. As the wavelength
decreases, the lines are found closer together and weaker in intensity
until the series limit at 3646 A is reached beyond which there are no -
Further separate lines but only a faint continuous spectrum. Balmer’s
formula for the wavelengths of this series is
1 1 1
=𝑅 2− 2 𝑛 = 3, 4, 5, … … … . . Balmer
λ 2 𝑛
The quantity R, known as the Rydberg number, has the value
𝑅 = 1.097 × 107 𝑚−1
The 𝐻𝛼 line corresponds to n=3, the 𝐻𝛽 line to n=4, and so on. The series
limit corresponds to 𝑛 = ∞ so that it occurs at a wavelength of 4 𝑅 in
agreement with experiment.
The Balmer series contains only those wavelengths in the visible
portion of the hydrogen spectrum. The spectral lines of hydrogen in the
ultraviolet and infrared regions fall into several other series. In the
ultraviolet the Lymen series contains the wavelengths specified by the
formula
1 1 1
=𝑅 2− 2 𝑛 = 2,3,4, … … … … Lymen
λ 1 𝑛
In the infrared, three spectral series have been found whose
component lines have the wavelengths specified by the formulas
 1 1 1
=𝑅 − 𝑛 = 4, 5, 6, … … Paschen
λ 32 𝑛2
1 1 1
=𝑅 − 2 𝑛 = 5, 6, 7, … … … … . Bracket
λ 42 𝑛
1 1 1
=𝑅 − 2 𝑛 = 6, 7, 8, … … … . Pfund
λ 52 𝑛
The above spectral series of hydrogen are plotted in terms of
wavelengths in fig
Correspondence Principle:
The principle of quantum physics, so different from those of classical
physics in the microscopic world that lies beyond the reach of our senses,
must nevertheless yield results identical with those of classical physics in
the domain where experiment indicates the latter to be valid. We have
already seen that this fundamental requirement is satisfied by the theory
of relativity, the quantum theory of radiation, and the wave theory of
matter, we shall now show that it is satisfied also by Bohr’s theory of the
atom.
According to electromagnetic theory, an electron moving in a circular
orbit radiates electromagnetic waves whose frequencies are equal to its
frequency of revolution and to harmonics of that frequency.
 In a hydrogen atom the electrons speed is
𝑒
𝑣=
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑚𝑟
Where r is the radius of its orbit. Hence the frequency of revolution f
of the electron is
𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑
𝑓=
𝑜𝑟𝑏𝑖𝑡 𝑐𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑚𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒
𝑣
=
2𝜋𝑟
𝑒
=
2𝜋 4𝜋𝜀0 𝑚𝑟 3
The radius 𝑟𝑛 of a stable orbit is given in terms of its quantum
number n by
𝑛2 ℎ2 𝜀0
𝑟𝑛 =
𝜋𝑚𝑒 2
And also the frequency of revolution is
𝑚𝑒 4 2
𝑓= ( ) (1)
8𝜀 20ℎ3 𝑛3
Under what circumstances should the Bohr atom behave classically?
If the electron orbit is so large that we might expect to be able to
measure it directly, quantum effects should be entirely inconspicuous. An
orbit 1 cm across, for example meets this specification; its quantum
number is very close to n=10000, and while hydrogen atoms so
grotesquely large do not actually occur because their energies would be
only infinitesimally below the ionization energy. They are not prohibited
in theory. Now according to Bohr theory, a hydrogen atom dropping
from the 𝑛𝑖 𝑡ℎ energy level to 𝑛𝑓 𝑡ℎ energy level emits a photon whose
frequency is

𝑚𝑒 4 1 1
𝑣= ( − 2) (2)
8𝜀 20ℎ3 𝑛𝑓2 𝑛𝑖
Let us write n for the initial quantum number 𝑛𝑖 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛 − 𝑝 (𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑝 =
1, 2, 3, … … . ) for the final quantum number 𝑛𝑓 . With the substitution,
𝑚𝑒 4 1 1
𝑣= 2 3 2
− 2
8𝜀 ℎ (𝑛 − 𝑝) 𝑛
0 4
𝑚𝑒 2𝑛𝑝 − 𝑝2
= 2 3[ 2 2
]
8𝜀 ℎ 𝑛 (𝑛 − 𝑝)
0

Now , when 𝑛𝑖 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑓 are both large, n is much greater than p and
2𝑛𝑝 − 𝑝2 ≈ 2𝑛𝑝
(𝑛 − 𝑝)2 ≈ 𝑛2
So that
𝑚𝑒 4 2𝑝
𝑣= 2 3 3
8𝜀 0 ℎ 𝑛
When p=1, the frequency v of the radiation is exactly the same as the
frequency of rotation f of the orbital electron given in eq. (1) harmonics
of this frequency are radiated when p=2, 3, 4,…….. Hence both quantum
and classical pictures of hydrogen atom make identical predictions in the
Limit of very large quantum numbers. when n=2 eqn. (1) predicts a
radiation frequency that differs from eqn. (2) by almost 300 percent,
while when n=10,000, the discrepancy is only about 0.01 percent.
The requirement that quantum physics give the same results as
classical physics in the limit of large quantum numbers was called by
Bohr the Correspondence principle. It has played a very important role
in the development of quantum theory of matter.

LASER: LASER is the acronym of Light Amplification by

Stimulated Emission of Radiation.
During transition from one energy state to another, the light is absorbed
(or) emitted by particles. Under this action, 3 processes can occur.
Stimulated Emission:
Stimulated emission is the process by which an incoming photon of a
specific frequency can interact with an excited atomic electron (or other
excited molecular state), causing it to drop to a lower energy level. The
liberated energy transfers to the electromagnetic field, creating a new
photon with a phase, frequency, polarization, and direction of travel that
are all identical to the photons of the incident wave.
Application of LASER:
 Computer devices such as laser mouse, laser presentation, CD ROMs,
Laser printing, Barcode scanners and DVD ROMs
 Astronomy and communication applications.
 Medicine, surgery, Heat treatment and health
 War machines, guns and tanks.
 Cutting matters in metallurgy industry and related industries
 Robotics, especially in image processing and calculating distances
 Toys
 Welding
 Laser nuclear fusion
 Laser cooling