01-26-2008, 07:24 PM
TheTominator, I believe I followed your excellent explanation. "h" is Planck's constant, right? I think the only thing that isn't too clear is the bit about the s-shells (s-orbital?) - I thought s-orbitals were limited to one electron pair. But the details of that don't seem to effect the underlying logic of what you are saying. I'm not sure how I'll be able to formulate an answer to my student's question without losing too much of the important nuance; this may be one of those times where I'll just have to say "you'll have to wait until you have more background before you can have your excellent question answered correctly".
If you don't mind continuing to share your knowledge, does the greater energy of the electrons as their wavelength (and, hence, the radius of the atom) decreases have an effect on the emission and absorption spectra of atoms of elements across the period? It seems like that would explain part of the difference beyond just the addition of more electrons as you go across the period. For example, is part of the difference in the emission spectrum of lithium and beryllium due to the smaller radius caused by the attraction of the extra proton as well as the additional electron?
If you don't mind continuing to share your knowledge, does the greater energy of the electrons as their wavelength (and, hence, the radius of the atom) decreases have an effect on the emission and absorption spectra of atoms of elements across the period? It seems like that would explain part of the difference beyond just the addition of more electrons as you go across the period. For example, is part of the difference in the emission spectrum of lithium and beryllium due to the smaller radius caused by the attraction of the extra proton as well as the additional electron?