QUANTUM MECHANICS

AND ATOMIC PHYSICS

Course code; PY310
Course instructor, Ms. Andongolile, T
 HISTORY AND LAW OF QUANTUM
MECHANICS
• The classical theories were deterministic.
• For classical mechanics (Newton, Hamilton)
the physical systems were collections of
material points and fields of force moving
(evolving) in a completely predictable way.
• If someone knew the physical state and
external forces on it then the future and
past could be predicted
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Failure of Classical Physics
1. Stability of atoms
Classical physics predicted that atoms were unstable
and hence could not be the building blocks of matter.
The net charge is equal to 0

2. Classical Mechanics failed to explain the photoelectric

effect,
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Compton effect and Black body radiation curves 3
 Failure of classical physics
3. Explained successfully the motion of an object which are
observable and distinguishable and failed to explain the
motion of an object that is not observable and not
distinguishable
4. Line spectra of the hydrogen atom
• It failed to explain the spectrum of the hydrogen atom.
Experimentally it is observed that the spectrum of hydrogen
atoms consists of sets of lines which is represented by
• where RH is the Rydberg constant

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 How Quantum mechanics came
through

wavelength
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 Black body Radiation
• They suggested that there is no limit to the energy
of the vibrating electron at higher frequency
• Classical physics was unable to explain these
graphs.
• That predicted that energy would diverge for short
wavelengths!
• This dramatic failure of classical physics was what
prompted Max Planck to introduce quantum theory.
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 QUANTUM MECHANIST
• According to Planck’s quantum theory,
• “Different atoms and molecules can emit or
absorb energy in discrete quantities only. The
smallest amount of energy that can be emitted
or absorbed in the form of electromagnetic
radiation is known as quantum(Photon)”
• The energy of the radiation absorbed or emitted
is directly proportional to the frequency of the
radiation.
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Where E = Energy of photon
v = frequency of radiation

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Black Body radiation

• Planck's law accurately predicted that the

energy density approaches zero at short
wavelengths (high frequencies), avoiding
the ultraviolet catastrophe.
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 Photoelectric effect
• The photoelectric effect is a phenomenon
in which electrons are emitted from a
metal surface when it is exposed to
light(electromagnetic waves)

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Photoelectric effect
• classical physicists expected that when using
very dim light, it would take some time for
enough light energy to build up to eject an
electron from a metallic surface
• that the energy of the released photons would be
proportional to the intensity of the incident light.
• Einstein concluded that the energy of the
electrons is determined by the wavelength of the
light.
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Photoelectric effect
• Increasing the intensity of the light
increases the number of electrons that are
released, but not their energy.
• If light of a certain frequency can eject
electrons from a metal, it makes no
difference how dim the light is. There is
never a time delay.

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Photoelectric effect
• Phenomenon in which electrons are ejected
from the surface of a metal when light is
incident on it.
• These ejected electrons are called
photoelectrons the process is called
photoemission.
• To be emitted from the surface, an
electron must receive a minimum amount
of energy called the work function(ω or
Ф) of the surface
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Laws Governing the Photoelectric Effect

1. For a light of any given frequency,; (γ > γ Th), the

photoelectric current is directly proportional to the
intensity of light.
2. For any given material, there is a certain minimum
(energy) frequency, called threshold frequency, below
which the emission of photoelectrons stops completely,
no matter how high the intensity of incident light is.
3. The maximum kinetic energy of the photoelectrons is
found to increase with the increase in the frequency of
incident light, provided the frequency (γ > γ Th)
exceeds the threshold limit. The maximum kinetic
energy is independent of the intensity of light.
The photo-emission is an instantaneous process.
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Explanation of Photoelectric Effect
1. Einstein proposed that light was not only emitted as
quanta at a time but also propagated as individual
quanta, sufficiently small to be absorbed by the
electron
2. Planck found that the quantity associated with a
particular frequency ν of light all had the same
energy and that this energy was proportional to ν
that is
E=hν
3.The following equation can explain the photoelectric
effect
E(=hν) = Ф + Tmax
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Experimental study of Photoelectric
effects
• In an evacuated glass tube, two zinc plates,
Plate C acts as an anode, and D acts as a
photosensitive plate.
• If the radiation is incident on plate D through a
quartz window, electrons are ejected out of the
plate, and current flows in the circuit known as
photocurrent.
C
• Plate C can be maintained at +V D
or –V with
respect to plate D.

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 Experimental study of photoelectric effect.
• When the Cathode voltage is high enough that all the
photoelectrons emitted reach the anode, the
photocurrent reaches a maximum value, which is called
the saturation current.
• When -V the electrons are repelled. Some electrons
having sufficient energy are still able to reach the
cathode and constitute the current.
• The value of V when even the most energetic electron is not allowed to reach
the cathode is known as stopping potential
• the current now becomes zero.

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Factors Affecting the Photoelectric Effect

1.The intensity of incident radiation.

2.A potential difference between the metal plate and collector.
3.Frequency of incident radiation.
• Application of Photoelectric effect
• Used to generate electricity in solar panels.
• X-ray photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS)
• Lighting sensors, such as the ones used in
smartphones, enable automatic adjustment of screen
brightness according to the lighting.
• Photoelectric cells are used in burglar alarms.
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 Solved problems
1. In a photoelectric experiment, the wavelength of the light
incident on metal is changed from 300 nm to 400 nm and
(hc/e = 1240 nm-V). Find the decrease in the stopping
potential.
Solution:
• hc/λ1 = ϕ + eV1 . . . . (i)
• hc/λ2 = ϕ + eV2 . . . . (ii)
• Equation (i) – (ii)
• hc(1/λ1 – 1/λ2) = e × (V1 – V2)
• ⇒V1 – V2 = (hc/e) × [(λ2 – λ1)/(λ1 λ2)]
• = (1240 nm V) × 100nm/(300nm × 400nm)
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 Bohr Model of Hydrogen atom
i. In 1913, the Danish physicist Niels H. D. Bohr
proposed a model of the hydrogen atom that
combined the work of Planck, Einstein, and
Rutherford and was remarkably successful in
predicting the observed spectrum of hydrogen
ii. The Rutherford model assigned charge and mass
to the nucleus but was silent regarding the charge
and mass distribution of the electrons.
iii. Classical mechanists failed to explain the stability
of an atom
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• Bohr assumed that the electron in the
hydrogen atom moved in an orbit about the
positive nucleus, bound by the electrostatic
attraction of the nucleus
• Such a model is mechanically stable
because the Coulomb potential V = -kZe2/r
provides the centripetal force necessary
for the electron to move in a circle of
radius r at speed v (i)
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• The total energy of the electron is the sum
of the kinetic and the potential energies

• From eqn (i)

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• So, the total energy can be written as

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 Bohr’s postulates
1. Electrons could move in certain orbits
without radiating. He called these orbits
stationary states.
2. The atom radiates when the electron makes
a transition from one stationary state to
another (Fig below) and the frequency f of
the emitted radiation is not the frequency of
motion in either stable orbit but is related to
the energies of the orbits by Planck’s theory
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• Where h is Planck’s radiation is emitted
constant and Ei and Ef
are the energies of the
initial and final states
(Fig aside) The electron
orbits without radiating
until it jumps to another
allowed radius of lower
energy, at which time
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3.Electrons revolve around the nucleus
only in orbits in which their angular
momentum is an integral multiple of h/2π
i.e.

4. In the limit of large orbits and large

energies, quantum calculations must
agree with classical calculations, called
the correspondence theory
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• Bohr’s quantization of the angular
momentum L is

• where the integer n is called a quantum

number and

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 R= Rydberg constant(
)
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HYDROGEN SPECTRA EXPLAINED BOHR CONCEPT

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Example:

Compute the wavelength of the Hβ spectral

line, that is, the second line of the Balmer
series predicted by Bohr’s model.

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WAVE-PARTICLE DUALITY
• In this chapter wave-particle and uncertainty will
be discussed
Matter-wave (De Bloglie hypothesis)
• Louis De Bloglie in 1924 gave the hypothesis of
matter-wave “the duality”
• According to this concept every moving particle
has a wave packet associated with it.
• Just as a photon has a light wave associated with
it that governs its motion, so a material particle
(e.g., an electron) has an associated matter wave
that governs its motion.
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 Derivation of de Broglie equation
According to Einstein
• Energy of electron (X-ray)
E=hv……………………………………………(i)
h=planks constant
v=frequency of light radiation
According to Planks
• Energy of light radiation(X-ray)
E=Mc2………………………………………………………………(ii)
M=mass of electron
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Equating eqn i and ii we get
Mc2=
λ=
Where mc =momentum p
λ=………..De Bloglie relation

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• According to de Broglie, for matter and for
radiation alike the total energy E of an entity is
E = hv
• and the momentum p of the entity is related to
the wavelength of the associated wave by the
equation
p = h/λ
Particle concepts, energy E and momentum p are
connected through Planck's constant h to the
wave concepts, frequency v, and wavelength
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 Experimental Verification of de Bloglie

• Experimental verification of the de Broglie equation

was obtained by Davisson and Germer in 1927.
• The success comes by diffracting a beam of electrons
from the nickel surface. The pattern of electron
diffraction obtained by them is similar to that of x-ray
diffraction.

• The wavelength of electrons obtained from the

experiment is identical to the calculated wavelength
by the de Broglie relation. In this way, the particle and
wave nature of an electron and the quantized nature
of the de Broglie relation were established.
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In this experiment, electrons emitted from the hot filament and accelerated by 40V-68V before heating the nickel filament as shown

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 Limitation of de Broglie equation
• De Broglie's charge does not work on
large particles. (macroscopic particles) It
only works on small particles such as
electrons, protons, and neutrons.

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Phase velocity ang group velocity of
Debloglie
• Waves can be in a group and such groups
are called wave packets, so the velocity
with which a wave packet travels is called
group velocity.
• The velocity with which the phase of a
wave travels is called phase velocity. The
relation between group velocity and phase
velocity is proportionate.
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Let a plane simple harmonic wave moving in a
positive X direction be given by:
ψ = aSin(ωt – kx), where ω = 2πν and k
=2π/λ
a is the amplitude, ν is the frequency and λ is
the wavelength.
From above the phase of the wave at (x,t) is
given by :
φ(x,t) = ωt – kx =
For a point of constant phase
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Therefore, phase velocity (vp)is the velocity
with which the wave propagates in X direction.
It is also called the wave velocity

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Group velocity
• For a monochromatic wave the successive waves
are similar and hence indistinguishable. So, it is
not possible to measure the phase velocity
experimentally.
• The only way of doing this is to superpose other
wave trains of slightly different wavelengths
• The envelope of waves is called a wave packet or
wave group.
• The velocity with which the wave packet travels in
a dispersive medium is called the group velocity
vg
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• The amplitude of a resultant wave is given by

From the equation above

Angular frequency =
And wave number =

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 Group velocity =
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 Vp =
Differentiating with respect to k

Where k =2π/λ, dk = - dλ
For non dispersive media Vg=Vp

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Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle
Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle
• States that it is impossible to measure or calculate
exactly both the position and the momentum of a
particle.
• This principle is based on the wave-particle duality of
matter.
• Naked eyes cannot see such small particles. A powerful
light may collide with the electron and illuminate it.
• The collision of the powerful light source, while helping
in identification, increases the momentum of the
electron and makes it move away from the initial
position.
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 Uncertainty principle
• Thus, when fixing the position, the
velocity/momentum of the particle would have
changed from the original value.
• Hence, when the position is exact, the error
occurs in measuring velocity or momentum.
• In the same way, the measurement of
momentum, accurately, will change the
position.
• Heisenberg quantified the error in the
measurement of both position and momentum
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Heinsberg uncertainty formula
(Δx)(Δp) ≥
Where ħ =
Similar to the above expression, we
can write
∆E ⋅ ∆t = h
Where ∆E, ∆t is uncertainty in
measurement of energy and time
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 Example 1
An electron microscope is used to locate an
electron in an atom within a distance of 0.2 Å.
What is the uncertainty in the momentum of the
electron located in this way?

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THE COMPTON EFFECT
• The Compton effect (also called Compton
scattering) is the result of a high-energy photon
colliding with a target, which releases loosely
bound electrons from the outer shell of the atom
or molecule.
• The scattered radiation experiences a wavelength
shift that cannot be explained in terms of classical
wave theory, thus lending support to Einstein's
photon theory.
• The effect was first demonstrated in 1923 by
Arthur Holly Compton.
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Compton effect
Is an increase in λ of X-ray after scattering from
the surface of an object i.e the scattered X-ray
has a longer wavelength than the incident X-rays

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Consider diagram below
Compton scattering is an elastic process energy and
momentum are conserved

•
initial photon momentum = hν/c
scattered photon momentum = hν′/c
initial and final electron momenta are respectively 0
and p (=mc)
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Conservation of energy
• Loss in photon energy = gain in electron energy
hv’- hv =KE ………………………………(i)

M0 = rest mass of an electron

M = relativistic mass of electron after scattering
v = photon wavelength before scattering
v’= radiation wavelength after scattering

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For momentum in x direction before and after
collision
hν/c+0=(hν′/c)cos θ + p cos ϕ…………..(ii)
In y-direction
0=(hν′/c)sinθ−p sinϕ………………………(iii)

multiply Eqs (ii)(iii) by ‘c’ and rewrite them as

(pc)cos ϕ=hν−(hν′)cos θ……………………………(iv)

(pc)sin ϕ=(hν′)sinθ…………………………………(v)
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s
By squaring each of these equations and adding the
new ones
p2c2=(hν)2−2(hν)(hν′)cosθ+(hν′)2 ………………………(vi)
The total energy of an electron
E=KE+moc2
From eqn (i)
KE =hv’-hv
E= (hv’-hv) +moc2……………………………….1
From the relativistic mass of an electron (ref special
relativity)
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………………………...2 58
Equating eqn (1)&(2) and squaring the obtained eqn we
have
p2c2=(hν)2−2(hν)(hν′)+(hν′)2+2moc2(hν−hν′)…………
(vii)

Now comparing equation (vi) and (vii) we finally obtain

2moc2(hν−hν′)=2(hν)(hν′)(1−cosθ)……………………(viii)
Dividing Eq.(viii) by 2h2c2
( − )= () () 1−cosθ)
and so, since ν/c=1/λ
and ν′/c=1/λ′
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 (− ) = (1−cosθ)/λλ′
/λ−λ′/= (1−cosθ) is called the Compton
wavelength

Applications
Compton scattering is of prime importance to
radiobiology, as it happens to be the most
probable interaction of high energy X rays with
atomic nuclei in living beings and is applied in
radiation therapy.
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