CHAPTER 4

Structure of the Atom

 4.1 The Atomic Models of Thomson and Rutherford

 4.2 Rutherford Scattering
 4.3 The Classic Atomic Model
 4.4 The Bohr Model of the Hydrogen Atom
 4.5 Successes and Failures of the Bohr Model
 4.6 Characteristic X-Ray Spectra and Atomic Number
 4.7 Atomic Excitation by Electrons
 4.1 The Atomic Models of Thomson and
Rutherford

Pieces of evidence that scientists had in 1900 to indicate that

the atom was not a fundamental unit:

1) There seemed to be too many kinds of atoms, each belonging

to a distinct chemical element.
2) Atoms and electromagnetic phenomena were intimately related.
3) The problem of valence (원자가). Certain elements combine
with some elements but not with others, a characteristic that
hinted at an internal atomic structure.
4) The discoveries of radioactivity, of x rays, and of the electron
 Thomson’s Atomic Model

 Thomson’s “plum-pudding” model of the atom had the positive

charges spread uniformly throughout a sphere the size of the
atom with, the newly discovered “negative” electrons embedded
in the uniform background.

 In Thomson’s view, when the atom was heated, the electrons

could vibrate about their equilibrium positions, thus producing
electromagnetic radiation.
Experiments of Geiger and Marsden
 Under the supervision of Rutherford,
Geiger and Marsden conceived a new
technique for investigating the structure
of matter by scattering particles (He
nuclei, q = +2e) from atoms.

 Plum-pudding model would predict

only small deflections. (Ex. 4-1)

 Geiger showed that many  particles

were scattered from thin gold-leaf
targets at backward angles greater
than 90°.
Rutherford: ”It was as if you fired a 15 inch shell at a tissue paper
and it came back and hit you”
Example 4.1

 The maximum scattering angle corresponding to the maximum momentum

change
 Maximum momentum change of the α particle is
or
 Determine θ by letting ∆pmax be perpendicular to the direction of motion.
Multiple Scattering from Electrons?
 If an α particle were scattered by many electrons and N electrons
results in
 The number of atoms across the thin gold layer of 6 × 10−7 m:

 Assume the distance between atoms is

and there are

That gives
Rutherford’s Atomic Model
 even if the α particle scattered from all 79 electrons in
each atom of gold  total  2300  79(0.016o )  6.8o

The experimental results were not consistent with Thomson’s

atomic model.

 Rutherford proposed that an atom has a positively charged

core (nucleus) surrounded by the negative electrons.
4.2 Rutherford Scattering
The Assumptions
1. The scatterer is so massive that it does not recoil significantly;
therefore the initial and final kinetic energies of the  particle
are practically equal.
2. The target is so thin that only a single scattering occurs.
3. The bombarding particle and target scatterer are so small that they
may be treated as point masses and charges.
4. Only the Coulomb force is effective.
 The Relationship Between the Impact
Parameter b and the Scattering Angle 
 There is a relationship between the impact parameter b and the
scattering angle θ.

When b is small,
 r gets small.
 Coulomb force gets large.
 θ can be large and the particle can be repelled backward.

(p. 133-134)
• however, cannot pick impact
parameter in an experiment.

• particles are incident at varied impact

parameters all around the scatterer.

• Any particle inside a circle of area

πb02 will be scattered at angles
greater than θ0.

• Define cross section σ = πb02 for

scattering at an angle greater than θ0.

• σ related to the probability for a

particle being scattered by the σ = πb02
nucleus.
Rutherford Scattering equation

The number of particles scattered per unit area is

 The Important Points
1. The scattering is proportional to the square of the
atomic number of both the incident particle (Z1) and the
target scatterer (Z2).
2. The number of scattered particles is inversely
proportional to the square of the kinetic energy of the
incident particle.
3. For the scattering angle  , the scattering is proportional
to 4th power of sin( /2).
4. The Scattering is proportional to the target thickness for
thin targets.
4.3: The Classical Atomic Model
As suggested by the Rutherford Model the atom consisted of a small,
massive, positively charged nucleus surrounded by moving electrons.
This then suggested consideration of a planetary model of the atom.
Let’s consider atoms as a planetary model.
The Planetary Model is Doomed
 From classical E&M theory, an accelerated electric charge
radiates energy (electromagnetic radiation) which means total
energy must decrease. Radius r must decrease!!

Electron crashes into the nucleus!?

 Obviously most atoms are stable, so once again classical physics
breaks down at small length scales.
 Physics had reached a turning point in 1900 with Planck’s
hypothesis of the quantum behavior of radiation.
4.4: The Bohr Model of the Hydrogen Atom
• In 1913 Neil’s Bohr developed a structural model for
the hydrogen atom consistent with the nuclear model of
Rutherford and the observed spectral series.

• Believed quantum principles should govern more

phenomena than just blackbody radiation and the
photoelectric effect.

• Bohr assumed electron moved around a massive

positively charged nucleus (mass of nucleus taken to
be infinite).

• radius of the orbit >> radius of nucleus.

The Bohr Model of the Hydrogen Atom
• Bohr also made the following general assumptions:

1) “Stationary states” (orbiting electrons in atoms do not radiate energy).

These states have definite total energy.
2) EM radiation emitted/absorbed when electrons make transitions
between stationary states such that hf = E = E1 − E2
3) Classical laws of physics do not apply to transitions between
stationary states.
4) The mean kinetic energy of the electron-nucleus system is quantized
such that K = n h forb/2, where forb is the frequency of rotation.
As we shall see this is equivalent to quantizing the angular momentum
of the stationary states in multiples of h/2π.

• Used these four assumptions to derive the Rydberg equation for characteristic spectra.

• Four assumptions keep as much as possible the ideas of classical physics.

Quantization of angular momentum
Bohr Radius
 Rearranging for radius, result is that the radii of the stationary states in the
hydrogen atom are quantized:

Where the Bohr radius is given by

 The smallest diameter of the hydrogen atom is 

 plugging the radius into our previous expression in the planetary model for the
energy of a stable electron orbit:

 n = 1 gives its lowest energy state (called the “ground” state)

The Hydrogen Atom
 The energies of the stationary states

where E0 = 13.6 eV

 Emission of light occurs when the atom is

in an excited state and decays to a lower
energy state (nu → nℓ).

where f is the frequency of a photon.

R∞ is the Rydberg constant.

Transitions in the Hydrogen Atom

Lyman series: n = 1 (invisible).

Balmer series: n = 2 (visible).
Paschen series: n = 3 (visible).

It was clear Bohr’s model

predicts all the frequencies
in atomic hydrogen.
Fine Structure Constant
 The electron’s velocity in the Bohr model:

 On the ground state,

v1 = 2.2 × 106 m/s ~ less than 1% of the speed of light

 The ratio of v1 to c is the fine structure constant.

 α is a fundamental physical constant characterizing

the strength of the electromagnetic interaction
 The Correspondence Principle

Classical electrodynamics + Bohr’s atomic model

Determine the properties

of radiation

Need a principle to relate the new modern results with classical ones.

In the limits where classical and

Bohr’s correspondence
principle quantum theories should agree,
the quantum theory must reduce
the classical result.
The Correspondence Principle
 The frequency of the radiation emitted fclassical is equal to the orbital
frequency forb of the electron around the nucleus.

 The frequency of the transition from n + 1 to n is

 For large n,

Substitute E0:
4.5: Successes and Failures of the Bohr Model
 The electron and hydrogen nucleus actually revolved about their
mutual center of mass.

 The electron mass is replaced by its reduced mass.

 The Rydberg constant for infinite nuclear mass is replaced by R.

1  1 1  E
 R  2  2  , R  0
  nl nu  hc

 Discovery of Deuterium (1932) from slight splitting of Hα line between Hydrogen

(656.47 nm) and Deuterium (656.29 nm)
Limitations of the Bohr Model

The Bohr model was a great step of the new quantum theory,
but it had its limitations.

1) Works only to single-electron atoms

2) Could not account for the intensities or the fine
structure of the spectral lines
3) Could not explain the binding of atoms into
molecules

➡ To overcome these limitations a full quantum mechanical treatment

is required (Chapter 7).
 4.6: Characteristic X-Ray Spectra and
Atomic Number
 Discussed the production of X-rays
previously (Section 3.7).
 The bremsstrahlung radiation is
superimposed on peaks whose
wavelength is element specific.
 Although strictly speaking the Bohr model
only applies to one electron atoms it was
believed that the Bohr-Rutherford atom
would also apply to many-electron atoms.
 Bohr model suggests that the
electrons occupy shells of radius rn
characterized by the principle quantum
number n.
Characteristic X-Ray Spectra and Atomic Number
Atomic Number

L shell to K shell Kα x ray

M shell to K shell Kβ x ray

 Atomic number Z = number of protons in the nucleus

 Moseley found a relationship between the frequencies of the
characteristic x ray and Z.
This holds for the Kα x ray
Moseley’s Empirical Results
 The x ray is produced from n = 2 to n = 1 transition.
 From Bohr model:

 E0 and thus R is prop to (Ze)2.

 For electron making a transition into K-shell from L-shell it feels an

effective charge Z-1 due to remaining electron in the K-shell
therefore:

 Moseley’s research clarified the importance of the electron

shells for all the elements, not just for hydrogen.
 Also demonstrated Z determined ordering in the periodic table.
4.7: Atomic Excitation by Electrons
 Franck and Hertz studied the phenomenon of ionization via
electron bombardment.

 Observations:
 Accelerating voltage is below 5 V  electrons did not lose energy
 Accelerating voltage is above 5 V  sudden drop in the current
Atomic Excitation by Electrons
 Ground state has E0 to be zero.
First excited state has E1.
The energy difference E1 − 0 = E1 is the excitation energy.

 Hg has an excitation energy of

4.88 eV in the first excited state
 No energy can be transferred to
Hg below 4.88 eV because not
enough energy is available to
excite an electron to the next
energy level

 Above 4.88 eV, the current drops because scattered electrons no longer
reach the collector until the accelerating voltage reaches 9.8 eV and so on.
 Atomic Excitation by Electrons

 The Franck-Hertz experiment provided further proof of the quantization

of atomic energy levels.
 Bombarding electron kinetic energy can only change in discrete amounts
which depend on the energy levels of the atoms in the vacuum tube.