GRE ATOMIC AND QUANTUM PHYSICS REVIEW

SOCIETY OF PHYSICS STUDENTS

1. Experiments and Effects 1.1. Stern-Gerlach. Beam of electrons goes through an inhomogenous magnetic eld. (Originally done with silver atoms, which have one valence electron.) The beam is seen to split into two discrete beams. Conclusion: Electrons have spin 1/2. 1.2. Zeeman Eect. e (L + 2S ) Bexternal 2m Splitting in energy levels is B Bexternal , where B = e /2m. H = 1.3. Stark Eect. H = eEexternal r cos . Energy splitting goes like |e|Ea0 . 1.4. Rutherford Scattering. Dierential cross-section goes like 1/ sin4 . 1.5. Franck-Hertz. Electrons accelerated through mercury vapor. At certain voltages, the electrons would have the proper energy to excite the Hg atoms. Conclusion: another clue that there are discrete energy levels to which an atom can be excited. 1.6. Photoelectric Eect. Light hitting some metallic surface. Energy of electrons scattered depends on wavelength of light, not intensity. Ephoton = hc/ = 12400/. ( in Angstroms.) 1.7. Youngs Double-split Experiments. p. 90 in French & Taylor. Two slits a distance d apart, a screen a distance D away. y is the distance from the center of the screen. 2 yd Phase dierence: = D d Intensity: I (y ) = 4I0 cos2 y D 1.8. Compton Scattering. Photon hits an electron at rest. Scattered photon has a changed energy. = mh (1 cos ). Signals the particle behavior of photons. ec
Date : November 1, 2004.

GRE Quantum Review

1.9. M ossbauer. Crystal lattice absorbs energy of recoiling nucleus emitting photon: 1+v/c p2 c2 1 mv 2 /N = 2mc Erecoil = 2 2 N . Introduce a Doppler shift: observed = source 1v/c s and reabsorption/resonant absorption can be detected: Erecoil = h(o s ) = hs 1.10. Ramsauer-Townsend Eect. Scattering of electrons by noble-gas atoms. See also 3.4 1.11. Wave-particle Duality. deBroglie wavelength: = h/p = h/mv = h/ 2mE 2. Hydrogen 2.1. Bohr Model. Energy levels: Quantization of e wavelength: Radius of nth shell: Bohr radius: m En = 2 2 n = 2rn r n = n 2 a0 = n 2 4 0 2 me2 e2 4 0
2

1 n2

r1 = a0 = 0.529 1010 m

2.2. Fine Structure. On the order of 4 mc2 . is the ne structure constant. Due to both the relativistic correction and spin-orbit coupling: Relativistic correction: Spin-orbit correction: H = H = p4 8m3 c2 e2 1 SLB 2 8 0 m c2 r3

2.3. Hyperne Splitting. On the order of (me /mp )4 mc2 . Due to magnetic interaction between the dipole moments of the electron and the proton. 3. Some standard potentials 3.1. Innite Square Well. Width L. Energy levels: Wavefunction: n2 2 2 2mL2 2 nx n = sin L L En =

GRE Quantum Review

3.2. Harmonic Oscillator. Potential: Ground state wavefunction: Energy levels: 1 k 1 V = kx2 = m 2 x2 , 2 2 m m 1/4 m 2 (x) = x exp 2 1 En = (n + ) 2

3.3. NMR. is the gyromagnetic ratio, i.e., = S , where is the magnetic dipole moment and S is the spin. Larmor Frequency: = B0 3.4. Transmission and Reection. in = Aeikx , r = Beikx , and t = F eikx . |t |2 F The transmission coeecient T is dened to be T = = F AA . The reection |in |2 coecient R is such that R + T = 1. 4. Atomic Stuff 4.1. Work Function. Energy needed to remove an electron from the Fermi surface of a metal. Basically just the photoelectric eect, with the work function being the minimum energy needed to eject an electron in the rst place. See also 1.6. 4.2. Atomic Spectra. absorption wavelengths: 1 =R 1 1 2 2 k n , n = k + 1, k + 2, . . .

This holds for one electron atoms. R is the Rydberg constant. k = 1 is the Lyman series, k = 2 is the Balmer series. Remember that Moseleys Law is basically the same thing, but with the atomic number Z decreased due to screening. 4.3. Shell Models.