- #1
maverick280857
- 1,789
- 5
Hi
Those of you who have read Bohr's Theory in Chemistry may have encountered the relation,
[tex]
\frac{1}{\lambda} = RhcZ^{2}(\frac{1}{n_{1}^{2}}-\frac{1}{n_{2}^{2}})
[/tex]
for the wavelength of radiation emitted when an electron goes from a higher energy level [tex]n_{2}[/tex] to a lower energy level [tex]n_{1}[/tex], R is the Rydberg Constant, c is the speed of light and Z is the atomic number of the one-electron (hydrogen-like) species being considered.
Now some books refer to the fraction [tex]\frac{1}{\lambda}[/tex] as the "wavenumber", whereas in physics, the fraction [tex]\frac{2\pi}{\lambda}[/tex] is called the wavenumber. Why should this difference exist at all?
I was told by my teachers to make a distinction when answering questions on physics (use the second formula) and chemistry (use the first one) but that to me seems hardly convincing.
Cheers
Vivek
Those of you who have read Bohr's Theory in Chemistry may have encountered the relation,
[tex]
\frac{1}{\lambda} = RhcZ^{2}(\frac{1}{n_{1}^{2}}-\frac{1}{n_{2}^{2}})
[/tex]
for the wavelength of radiation emitted when an electron goes from a higher energy level [tex]n_{2}[/tex] to a lower energy level [tex]n_{1}[/tex], R is the Rydberg Constant, c is the speed of light and Z is the atomic number of the one-electron (hydrogen-like) species being considered.
Now some books refer to the fraction [tex]\frac{1}{\lambda}[/tex] as the "wavenumber", whereas in physics, the fraction [tex]\frac{2\pi}{\lambda}[/tex] is called the wavenumber. Why should this difference exist at all?
I was told by my teachers to make a distinction when answering questions on physics (use the second formula) and chemistry (use the first one) but that to me seems hardly convincing.
Cheers
Vivek