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In 1890, Rydberg proposed on a formula describing the relation between the wavelengths in spectral lines of alkali metals. [2]: v1:376 He noticed that lines came in series and he found that he could simplify his calculations using the wavenumber (the number of waves occupying the unit length, equal to 1/λ, the inverse of the wavelength) as his unit of measurement.
The hydrogen spectral series can be expressed simply in terms of the Rydberg constant for hydrogen and the Rydberg formula. In atomic physics, Rydberg unit of energy, symbol Ry, corresponds to the energy of the photon whose wavenumber is the Rydberg constant, i.e. the ionization energy of the hydrogen atom in a simplified Bohr model.
While the Rydberg formula had been known experimentally, it did not gain a theoretical basis until the Bohr model was introduced. Not only did the Bohr model explain the reasons for the structure of the Rydberg formula, it also provided a justification for the fundamental physical constants that make up the formula's empirical results.
The concepts of the Rydberg formula can be applied to any system with a single particle orbiting a nucleus, for example a He + ion or a muonium exotic atom. The equation must be modified based on the system's Bohr radius ; emissions will be of a similar character but at a different range of energies.
Where R H is the same Rydberg constant for hydrogen from Rydberg's long known formula. This also means that the inverse of the Rydberg constant is equal to the Lyman limit. For the connection between Bohr, Rydberg, and Lyman, one must replace m with 1 to obtain
The model's key success lay in explaining the Rydberg formula for the spectral emission lines of atomic hydrogen by using the transitions of electrons between orbits. [24]: 276 While the Rydberg formula had been known experimentally, it did not gain a theoretical underpinning until the Bohr model was introduced. Not only did the Bohr model ...
It is now apparent why Rydberg atoms have such peculiar properties: the radius of the orbit scales as n 2 (the n = 137 state of hydrogen has an atomic radius ~1 μm) and the geometric cross-section as n 4. Thus, Rydberg atoms are extremely large, with loosely bound valence electrons, easily perturbed or ionized by collisions or external fields.
Johannes (Janne) Robert Rydberg (Swedish: [ˈrŷːdbærj]; 8 November 1854 – 28 December 1919) was a Swedish physicist mainly known for devising the Rydberg formula, in 1888, which is used to describe the wavelengths of photons (of visible light and other electromagnetic radiation) emitted by changes in the energy level of an electron in a hydrogen atom.