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The spectral series of hydrogen, on a logarithmic scale. The emission spectrum of atomic hydrogen has been divided into a number of spectral series, with wavelengths given by the Rydberg formula. These observed spectral lines are due to the electron making transitions between two energy levels in an atom.
The only detected inorganic molecule with five or more atoms is SiH 4. [14] Molecules larger than that all have at least one carbon atom, with no N−N or O−O bonds. [14] Carbon monoxide is frequently used to trace the distribution of mass in molecular clouds. [15]
The red H-alpha spectral line of the Balmer series of atomic hydrogen, which is the transition from the shell n = 3 to the shell n = 2, is one of the conspicuous colours of the universe. It contributes a bright red line to the spectra of emission or ionisation nebula, like the Orion Nebula , which are often H II regions found in star forming ...
Originally all spectral lines were classified into series: the principal series, sharp series, and diffuse series. These series exist across atoms of all elements, and the patterns for all atoms are well-predicted by the Rydberg-Ritz formula. These series were later associated with suborbitals.
One molecule, composed of the abundant carbon and oxygen atoms, and very stable against dissociation into atoms, is carbon monoxide (CO). The wavelength of the photon emitted when the CO molecule falls from its lowest excited state to its zero energy, or ground, state is 2.6mm, or 115 gigahertz. This frequency is a thousand times higher than ...
The most intense spectral lines in the radio spectrum can become opaque, so that only the surface of the line-emitting cloud is visible. This mainly affects the carbon monoxide lines at millimetre wavelengths that are used to trace molecular clouds, but the 21-cm line from neutral hydrogen can become opaque in the cold neutral medium. Such ...
The hydrogen spectral series in particular was first successfully explained by the Rutherford–Bohr quantum model of the hydrogen atom. In some cases spectral lines are well separated and distinguishable, but spectral lines can also overlap and appear to be a single transition if the density of energy states is high enough.
The spectrum of molecules has advantages over atomic spectral lines, as atomic lines are often very strong, and therefore only come from high in the atmosphere. Also the profile of the atomic spectral line can be distorted due to isotopes or overlaying of other spectral lines. [ 6 ]