What do the lines in the emission spectrum of hydrogen show?

Emission Spectrum of Hydrogen. When an electric current is passed through a glass tube that contains hydrogen gas at low pressure the tube gives off blue light. When this light is passed through a prism (as shown in the figure below), four narrow bands of bright light are observed against a black background.

Why do we only see 4 lines in the hydrogen emission spectrum?

Although hydrogen has only one electron, it contains many energy levels. When its electron jumps from higher energy level to a lower one, it releases a photon. Those photons cause different colours of light of different wavelengths due to the different levels. Those photons appear as lines.

How do I calculate the number of emission lines?

Possible spectral lines= (n2-n1)(n2-n1+1)/2 this is the possible numbers. But in visible region, electron when jumps from n2=5 to n1=1 then according to the formula possible lines=(5-1)(5-1+1)/2=10So the possibilities are 5 to 4, 5 to 3, 5 to 2, 5 to 1, 4 to 3, 4 to 2, 4 to 1, 3 to 2, 3 to 1, 2 to 1.

What is r in Lyman series?

R = Rydbergs constant (Also written is RH) Z = atomic number. since the electron is de-exited from 1(st) exited state (i.e n=2) to ground state (i.e n=1) for first line of Lyman series.

What causes the lines in the emission spectrum for elements?

Emission lines occur when the electrons of an excited atom, element or molecule move between energy levels, returning towards the ground state. The spectral lines of a specific element or molecule at rest in a laboratory always occur at the same wavelengths.

What causes bright lines on emission spectrum?

When the sodium atom electrons then fall back down to their previous energy level, they emit the difference in energy as light at the D line frequency, creating the bright emission lines.

What color in the hydrogen spectrum has the longest wavelength?

The visible photons in the hydrogen spectrum are the Balmer series lines. The lowest energy and longest wavelength photon corresponds to the 3→2 transition and is red.

How many possible lines can be observed in the emission spectrum?

If an electron moves from n=6 to 5 we get a spectral line. Then from n=5 to 4 we get one and so on giving us a maximum of 5 spectral lines.

Why is the emission spectrum of hydrogen not continuous?

Emission spectra can have a large number of lines. The number of lines does not equal the number of electrons in an atom. For example, hydrogen has one electron, but its emission spectrum shows many lines. Instead, each emission line represents a different jump in energy that an electron of an atom could make.

What is the maximum number of emission lines obtained?

The maximum number of emission lines when the excited electron of a H atom in n = 6 drops to the ground state is 2(n−n)(n−n+1)=25×6=15 lines.