The Bohr's atomic model helps to overcome the limitation of the Rutherford model by introducing the concept of quantized electron orbits. In the Rutherford model, electrons were depicted as orbiting the nucleus in a continuous manner, which couldn't explain certain phenomena like the stability of atoms and the spectral lines of hydrogen. Bohr's model proposed that electrons could only occupy specific orbits or energy levels around the nucleus, each corresponding to a specific energy value. This quantization of electron orbits helped to explain the stability of atoms and the discrete spectral lines observed in atomic emission and absorption spectra.
To illustrate the absorption and emission of radiation in Bohr's model, one can consider the following:
- When an electron absorbs energy, it moves to a higher energy level or orbit further away from the nucleus.
- During this absorption process, the electron jumps from a lower energy level to a higher one, absorbing specific wavelengths of light.
- Conversely, when an electron moves from a higher energy level to a lower one, it emits energy in the form of light.
- This emission corresponds to specific wavelengths of light based on the energy difference between the two levels.
The quantization of angular momentums in Bohr's model refers to the idea that electrons can only exist in certain orbits with specific angular momentums around the nucleus. This quantization means that the angular momentum of an electron in a particular orbit is restricted to discrete, quantized values determined by Planck's constant and the radius of the electron's orbit. As a result, the electron's angular momentum cannot have any value but must be a multiple of Planck's constant divided by 2π. This quantization of angular momentum helps to explain the stability of electron orbits and the discrete nature of atomic spectra in a more accurate way than the Rutherford model.
