How to excite An Atom
What are Electrons and Excitation?
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electrons move around a nucleus of an
atom in concentric orbits these orbits
or shells represent different energy
states that electrons can exhibit
the farther and electron is from the
nucleus the greater its potential energy
while electrons typically remain in
their prescribed orbital energy level
it's possible for an electron to be
knocked from its lower orbit into a
higher one
thus a bombarding free electron can
collide with the bound electron raising
it to a higher orbit or energy level
this electron is now in a state of
excitation
however this higher orbital status is
fleeting the electron will be quickly
drawn back toward the nucleus and
returned to its original orbit during
this transition back to its normal state
a single photon of visible light is
emitted
this repeating sequence of electron
excitation followed by D excitation is
the basis for the functional capacity of
a fluorescent lightbulb
a typical fluorescent bulb is filled
with argon gas and a miniscule amount of
vaporized mercury
the inner surface of the tube is coated
with the powdery phosphor substance at
each end of the tube is an electrode
with filaments when heated to a high
temperature they emit or boil off
electrons
an AC voltage pulse supplied by a
starter pushes the electrons from one
end of the tube to the other
if one of the free electrons collides
with an electron of the mercury vapor
the electron is bumped from a lower to a
higher energy level the electron quickly
returns to its lower energy state and in
the process releases an ultraviolet
photon this photon is then absorbed by
the electrons of the phosphor powder
lining the tube again exciting electrons
in the process this excitation is
followed in turn by de-excitation
and the release of a low frequency
photon the photons from all these
reactions combine to produce the glow of
white light characteristic of
fluorescent bulbs
