Topic 2.2 - Electron Configuration

Question 1

What is the electromagnetic spectrum

Answer 1

range of frequencies of electromagnetic radiation and their respective wavelengths and photon energies

Question 2

what is electromagnetic radiation

Answer 2

different forms of different energy

Question 3

what is the middle of the electromagnetic spectrum

Answer 3

visible light
- lights of different wavelengths and colours (we can see)

Question 4

what is to the left of the electromagnetic spectrum

Answer 4

ultraviolet light + x-rays + y-rays

Question 5

what is to the right of the electromagnetic spectrum

Answer 5

infrared + microwaves + radio waves

Question 6

what differs about electromagnetic waves

Answer 6

they have different wave lengths

• red (longer wave length)
• purple (shorter wave length)

Question 7

what is frequency

Answer 7

the number of waves that passes through a particular point

• red (low frequency - longer wave lengths)
• purple (high frequency - shorter wave lengths)

Question 8

which side of the spectrum has a higher energy

Answer 8

electromagnetic radiation energy increases from right to left

Question 9

what is the formula for the speed of light

Answer 9

c = vf

speed of light = wave length x frequency

Question 10

what is white light

Answer 10

mixture of light waves of differing wave lengths and colours

Question 11

what is rainbow light

Answer 11

water droplets split the sunlight into all colours (refraction)

Question 12

what is the emission spectrum

Answer 12

emission spectra are when photons of light are emitted from atoms as excited electrons return to a lower energy level

Question 13

what is the absorption spectrum

Answer 13

light of a specific frequency is absorbed when electrons from an excited atom moves from a lower to higher energy level

• A continuous spectrum except for certain colours which are absorbed as the atoms are excited to higher energy levels

Question 14

Why is line spectra important

Answer 14

barcode for elements which gives information about the electron configurations of different atoms

Question 15

how does an atom absorb and emit energy

Answer 15

when electron moves into an higher energy level, this excited state doesn’t last long and the electron falls back down releasing energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation

Question 16

what does line spectra say about an atom

Answer 16

atoms emit photons of certain energies which give lines of certain frequencies

*atoms can’t change its energy by discrete amounts