Energy Levels
the fixed energies an electron can have
Quantum
the amount of energy needed to move an electron from one energy level to another
Quantum Mechanical Model
the modern description of the electrons in atoms
Atomic Orbital
a region of space in which there is a high probability of finding an electron
Electron Configurations
the ways in which electrons are arranged in various orbitals around the nuclei of atoms
aufbau principle
the rule that electrons occupy the orbitals of lowest energy first
Pauli exclusion principle
an atomic orbital may describe at most two electrons, each with opposite spin direction
Hund's rule
electrons occupy orbitals of the same energy in a way that makes the number of electrons with the same spin direction as large as possible
Amplitude
the height of a wave's crest
wavelength
The distance between crests of waves, such as those of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Frequency
the number of occurrences within a given time period (usually 1 second)
Hertz
the unit of frequency
Electromagnetic radiation
radiation consisting of waves of energy associated with electric and magnetic fields resulting from the acceleration of an electric charge
Spectrum
colored band produced when a beam of light passes through a prism
Atomic emission Spectrum
The frequencies of light emitted by an element separate into discrete lines
Ground State
(physics) the lowest energy state of an atom or other particle
Photons
light quanta
Heisenberg uncertainty Principle
it is impossible to know exactly both the velocity and the position of a particle at the same time