A particle in a box is a billiard ball ( kg) and the box has a width of m, the size of a billiard table. (Assume that the billiard ball slides without friction rather than rolls; that is, ignore the rotational kinetic energy.) What is the difference in energy between the and levels? Are quantum mechanical effects important for the game of billiards?
When a hydrogen atom undergoes a transition from the to the level, a photon with nm is emitted.
(a) If the atom is modeled as an electron in a one-dimensional box, what is the width of the box in order for the to transition to correspond to emission of a photon of this energy?
(b) For a box with the width calculated in part (a), what is the ground state energy? How does this correspond to the ground state energy of a hydrogen atom?
(c) Do you think a one-dimensional box is a good model for a hydrogen atom? Explain. (Hint: Compare the spacing between adjacent energy levels as a function of .)
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Key Concepts
Quantum Mechanics and Energy Levels
Particle in a One-Dimensional Box
Comparison of Energy Levels in Different Models
A proton is in a box of width . What must the width of the box be for the ground-level energy to be MeV, a typical value for the energy with which the particles in a nucleus are bound? Compare your result to the size of a nucleus — that is, on the order of m.
Recall that is the probability of finding the particle that has normalized wave function in the interval to . Consider a particle in a box with rigid walls at and . Let the particle be in the ground level and use as given in Eq. () where .
(a) For which values of , if any, in the range from to is the probability of finding the particle zero?
(b) For which values of is the probability highest?
(c) In parts (a) and (b) are your answers consistent with Fig. ? Explain.
(a) Find the excitation energy from the ground level to the third excited level for an electron confined to a box of width nm.
(b) The electron makes a transition from the to level by absorbing a photon. Calculate the wavelength of this photon.
(a) Find the lowest energy level for a particle in a box if the particle is a billiard ball ( kg) and the box has a width of m, the size of a billiard table. (Assume that the billiard ball slides without friction rather than rolls; that is, ignore the rotational kinetic energy.)
(b) Since the energy in part (a) is all kinetic, to what speed does this correspond? How much time would it take at this speed for the ball to move from one side of the table to the other?
An electron in a one-dimensional box has ground state energy eV. What is the wavelength of the photon absorbed when the electron makes a transition to the second excited state?
