CONTENTS

Chapter-1
1.Introduction
Chapter-2
2.History and Development
Chapter-3
3.Electronic Configuration
3.1. Bohr Model of Atom
Chapter-4
4.Radiation and Atoms
4.1. Width and Shape of Spectral Lines
4.1.1. Lifetime Broadening
4.1.2. Collision and Pressure Broadening
4.1.3. Doppler Broadening

5
 Chapter-5
5. Nuclear Effects on Atomic Structure
5.1. Hyperfine Structure
5.2. Isotope Effects
Chapter-6
Conclusion
References

6
 Chapter-1
1.Introduction
Atomic physic is the field of physics that
studies as an isolated system of electrons and
an atomic nucleus. Atomic physic typically
refers to the study of atomic structure and the
interaction between atoms. It is primarily
concerned with the way in which electrons are
arranged around the nucleus and the processes
by which these arrangements change. This
comprises ions, neutral atoms and, unless
otherwise stated, it can be assumed that the
term atom includes ions.
The term atomic physics can be associated
with nuclear power and nuclear weapons, due
to the synonymous use of atomic and nuclear in
standard English. Physicists distinguish between
7
atomic physics which deals with the atom as a
system consisting of a nuclear reactions and
special properties of atomic nuclei. As with
many scientific fields, strict delineation can be
highly contrived and atomic physics is often
considered in the wider context of atomic
molecular, and optical physics.
The structure of atoms and how light
interacts with them is responsible for the
appearance of the visible world. Quantum
mechanics was developed in order to explain
such phenomena as the spectra of light emitted
of absorbed by atoms. So far you have studied
the physics of hydrogen and helium as
illustration of how to apply quantum theory.
Our aim is now to understand atomic physics,
not just to illustrate the mathematics of
quantum mechanics. This is both interesting
and important, for Atomic physics is the

8
foundation for a wide range of basic science
and practical technology.

Chapter-2
2.History and development
One of the earliest steps towards atomic
physics the recognition that matter was
composed of atoms. Its forms a part of the
texts written in 6th century BC to 2nd century BC,
such as those as those of Democritus of
vaisesika sutra written by kanada. this theory
was developed in the modern sense of the
basic unit of a chemical element by the British
chemist and physicist John Dalton in the 18th
century. At this stage, it was not clear what
atoms were, although they could be described
and classified by their properties. The invention
of the periodic system of elements by Dmitri
Mendeleev was another great step forward.
9
 The true beginning of atomic physics is
marked by the discovery of spectral line and
attempts to describe the phenomenon, most
notably by Joseph von Fraunhofer. The study of
these lines led to the Bohr atom model and to
the birth of quantum mechanics. In seeking to
explain atomic spectra, an entirely new
mathematical model of matter was revealed.
As far as atoms and their electron shells overall
description, the atomic orbital model, but it
also provided new theoretical basis for
chemistry and spectroscopy. Since the second
world war, both theoretical and experimental
fields have advanced at a rapid pace. This can
be attributed to progress in computing
technology, which has allowed larger and more
sophisticated models of atomic structure and
associated collision processes. Similar
technological advances in accelerators,

10
detectors, magnetic field generation and lasers
have greatly assisted experimental work.

Chapter-3
3.Electronic configuration
Electrons form notional shells around the
nucleus. These are normally in a ground
state but can be excited by the absorption
of energy form light magnetic fields, or
interaction with a colliding particle.d

11
Electrons that populate a shell are said to
be in a bound state. The energy necessary
to remove an electron from its shell is called
the binding energy. Any quantity of energy
absorbed by the electron in excess of this
amount is conservation of energy. The atom
is said to have undergone the process of
ionization. If the electron absorbs quantity
of energy less than the binding energy, it
will be transferred to an excited state. After
a certain time, the electron in an excited
state will “jump” to a lower state. In a
neutral atom, the system will emit a photon
of the difference in energy, since energy is
conserved.
If an inner electron has absorbed
more than the binding energy (so that the
atom ionizes), then a more outer electron

12
may undergo a transition to fill the inner
orbital. In this case, a visible photon of a
characteristic X-ray is emitted, or a
phenomenon known as the Auger effect
may take place, where the released energy
is transferred to another bound electron,
causing it to go into the continuum. The
Auger effect allows one to multiply ionize
an atom with a single photon.
3.1 Bohr Model of the Atom
The Bohr model, proposed by Niels
Bohr in 1913, is a revolutionary theory
describing the structure of the hydrogen
atom. It introduced the idea of quantized
orbits for electrons, combining classical and
quantum physics.
Key postulates of the Bohr Model
1. Electrons Move in circular orbits:
13
 • Electrons revolve around the
nucleus in fixed, circular called
orbits or energy levels.
• These orbits are stable and do not
radiate energy.
2.Quantization of Angular Momentum:
• The angular momentum of an
electrons is quantized and given
by:
L=me vr = nh, n=1,2,3,…..
Where:
• me : Mass of the electron.
• v : Velocity of the electron.
• r : radius of the orbit.
• h : reduced plancck’s constant
(h=h/2π)
• n : principal quatum
number,representing the orbit.
14
 3.Energy Level:
. Each orbit has a specific energy. The
total energy of an electron in the nth
orbit is :
En= - 13.6/n2 eV,
where 13.6 eV is the ground-state energy of
the hydrogen atom.
4. emission or Absorption of energy
. Electrons can transition between orbits by
absorbing or emitting energy equal to the
difference between the energy level:
∆E = Ef - Ei = hv,
Where
. h : planks constant.
. v : Frequency of emittend absorbed
radiation
15
 . Ef,Ei : Final and iinitial energy levels.
Chapter-4

4. Radiation and Atoms

We will make extensive use of “models”
in this course to help us get a feel for the
physics. A favourite model for theorists is the
“two-level atom” i.e. one with only two
eigenstates 1, 2 with energy eigenvalues E1,
E2 respectively (E2 > E1). The wave functions
have, eE1t in general, a time dependence.
ᴪ1 = ∅1(x) eiE1t/ħ
ᴪ2 =∅ 2(x)eiE2t/ħ
When the atom is perturbed it may be
described by a wave function that is a linear
combination of 𝜓1 and 𝜓 2: 𝜓 = a𝜓 1 + b𝜓 2
giving the probability amplitude. We observe,
however, a probability density: the modulus
squared; | 𝜓|2. This will have a term
ab𝜓1 𝜓2ei(E1-E2)t/ħ

16
This is a time oscillating electron density with a
frequency 𝜔12:
ei(E1−E2)t/ħ = e−i𝜔12t
So
E2 – E1 =ħ 𝜔12
This is illustrated schematically in figure 1.

Figure 1: Evolution of the wavefunction of

a system with time.

17
So the perturbation produces a charge cloud
that oscillates in space – an oscillating dipole.
This
radiates dipole radiation. Whether or not we
get a charge displacement or dipole will depend
on the symmetry properties of the two states
1, and 2. The rules that tell us if a dipole with
be set up are called “selection rules”, a topic to
which we will return later in the course.
4.1 Width and Shape of Spectral Lines
The radiation emitted (or absorbed) by our
oscillating atomic dipole is not exactly
monochromatic,
i.e. there will be a range of frequency values for
!12. The spectral line observed is broadened by
one, or more, processes. A process that affects
all the atoms in the same way is called
“Homogeneous
Broadening”. A process that affects different
individual atoms differently is “Inhomogeneous
Broadening”.

18
 Examples of homogeneous broadening are
lifetime (or natural) broadening or collision (or
Presure)Broadening. Examples of
inhomogeneous broadening are Doppler
broadening and crystal field broadening.
2.1.1 Lifetime Broadening
This effect may be viewed as a
consequence of the uncertainty principle
ΔE∆t ~ħ
Since E = ħ𝜔, ∆E = ħ∆𝜔and if the time
uncertainty ∆t is the natural lifetime of the
excited atomic
state, T, we get a spread in frequency of the
emitted radiation ∆𝜔
∆𝜔 T 1 or ∆𝜔 ~1/T

The lifetime, T , is a statistical parameter

related to the time taken for the population of
the excited state to decay to 1/e of its initial
value. This exponential decay is reflected in the
experimental decay of the amplitude E(t) of the
light wave emitted. The frequency (or power)
19
spectrum of an exponentially decaying
amplitude is a Lorentzian shape for the
intensity as a function of frequency
I(𝜔)~1/(𝜔-𝜔0)2+(1/T)2
The full width at half-maximum, FWHM, is then
∆w~2(1/T)

A typical lifetime T~10-8 sec.

Figure 2: Decay of excited state population N(t)

leads to similar exponential decay of radiation
amplitude, giving a Lorentzian spectrum.
4.1.2 Collision or Pressure Broadening
A Exponential decay Lorentzian lineshape

20
collision with another atom while the atom is
radiating (oscillating) disrupts the phase of the
wave. The wave is therefore composed of
various lengths of uninterrupted waves. The
number of uninterrupted waves decays
exponentially with a 1/e time Tc, which is the
mean time between collisions. At atmospheric
pressure this is typically ~10-10 sec. The
exponential decay of the coherent oscillations
again leads to a Lorentzian lineshape.

N(t) I(w)
Time, t frequency, w
Number of uncollided atoms Intensity
spectrum
Exponential decay Lorentzian lineshape

21
Figure 3: Decay in number of undisturbed
atoms radiating leads to decay in amplitude of
wave undisturbed by a phase changing
collision. The associated frequency spectrum is
again Lorentzian.
4.1.3 Doppler Broadening
Atoms in a gas have a spread of speeds
given by the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution.
The Doppler shift of the light emitted is
therefore different for the atoms moving at
different speeds. There is then

a spread of Doppler shifted frequencies leading

to a broadening of the spectral line. Since
different atoms are affected differently this
Doppler Broadening is “Inhomogeneous
broadening”. The Doppler shift is given by:
𝜔=𝜔0(1±v/c)
The spread, or width of the line, is therefore
∆𝜔D~W0v/c
Since W0~ 1015 rad s−1 and v ~102 ms−1 we find
∆𝜔D ~ 2π109 rad s−1
22
 ∆v ~109 Hz

N(v) I(w)
atomic speed, v frequency, w
Distribution of atomic speed Doppler
broadening
Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution
Gaussian lineshape
Figure 4: Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution of
speeds and the associated Doppler broadening
giving a Gaussian lineshape.
Chapter-5
6 Nuclear Effects on Atomic Structure

23
 We have secretly made three assumptions
about the nucleus so far. We have assumed
that the
nucleus is stationary, has infinite mass and
occupies only a point in space. In fact, the
nuclei of all atoms consist of spinning charged
objects and so they have a resultant magnetic
moment. Secondly their mass is not infinite, so
the nucleus will move with the orbiting
electrons around their common
centre of gravity. Thirdly the nucleus has a
finite size with some shape over which the
proton charge is distributed. Each of these
effects will make a small change in the energy
levels. The magnetic interaction will lead to an
effect similar to spin-orbit coupling and give a
splitting of the energy levels know as hyperfine
structure, hfs. The kinetic energy of the moving
nucleus will affect the overall energy of the
atomic states. Finally, the size and shape of the
charges on the nucleus will affect the Coulomb

24
force on the electrons and hence affect the
energy. The term “hyperfine structure” is
reserved (at least in Oxford) for magnetic
effects of the nuclear spin. The mass and
electron field effects will be termed isotope
effects, since they depend to some extent
on the number of neutrons in a given atom.
6.1 Hyperfine Structu
Both the protons and the neutrons have
magnetic moments due to their spin. The total
nuclear spin is labelled I~. Spinning fermions
tend to pair up with another similar particle
with a spin in the opposite direction. For this
reason nucleii with even numbers of protons
and neutrons, the so-called even-even nuclei
have I = 0. Odd-odd or odd-even nuclei can
have integer or half-integer spin:
I = 1/2, 1, 3/2 etc. These nuclei will have a
magnetic dipole moment μI. Nucleii with
integer spin can also have an electric quadruple
moment as well. We will be concerned only

25
with the magnetic dipole moment. Nuclear
magnetic moments are small compared with
electronic moments. Recall the classical
relationship between magnetic moment and
angular moment ʎħ:
μ = —ƴλħ
In Quantum Mechanics the spin and orbital
moments are:-
µs =—gsµBs
µl = −glμBl
where gs = 2 and gl = 1 (Note we have used s, l
in units of ħ) Now μB = eħ/2me, where me =
mass of the electron. So nuclear moments are
going to be much smaller as the nuclear mass
mN >> me. So to keep the g-factor of the order
of unity we define the nuclear moment by
µI = gIμN-I
where gI is the nuclear g-factor (~1) and μN is
the nuclear magneton, related to μB by the
ratio of electron to proton mass:
μN = μB ×me/mp

26
The positive sign on our definition of μI is
purely a convention; we cannot tell in general
whether the magnetic moment will be parallel
or antiparallel to I, it can be either. The
magnetic moments of the electrons and
nucleus will precess around their mutual
resultant. The important thing to note is that
the smallness of μI will mean the interaction
with the magnetic field of the electrons will be
weak. The precession rate will therefore be
slow and angular momenta and J will remain
well-defined. The interaction can therefore also
be treated by perturbation theory and the
Vector Model. The perturbation can be
expressed:
ˆH3 = −ˆμI· ˆB el
It remains to find the expectation value of this
operator, and we will use our vector model to
find
vector quantities.
6.5 Isotope Effects

27
 Mass Effects The energy levels determined
basically by the Central Field are given by:
En ~Z2e4mr/2ħ2n2
Where mr is the reduced mass of the electron –
nucleus system. For an infinitely massiv nucleus
mr → me, the electron mass. For real atoms,
however, we need to deal with the motion of
the nucleus around the common centre-of-
mass. The resulting nuclear kinetic energy is
p2/2mn where pn,mn are the momentum and
mass respectively of the nucleus. For a two-
body system we can treat this by
substituting the reduced mass, mr, for me in
the Schr¨odinger equation. The change in
energy is then found simply by making the
same substitution in the energy eigenvalues.
The result (and you should be able to work this
out) is to shift the energy level up by
E(mr – me)/e.
In the case of a two-electron system we will
need to know explicitly the electron
wavefunctions.
28
The energy change ∆Emass is given by:
∆Emass=p2/2mn= (p+p)2/2mn
= p2+p22+2p1 .p2/2mn

Putting the p21,p22 terms in Schr¨odinger’s

equation gives a reduced-mass-type shift. The
p1.p2 term, however, needs to be calculated
explicitly, usually using Perturbation Theory.
The effect of this term is know as the ”specific
mass shift”. The shifts are detected by changes
in the frequency of transitions so the effects
need to be calculated separately for each level
involved. What will be observed is a small
difference in the spectral line positions for
different isotopes. The change in mass has a
decreasing relative effect as the nuclear masses
get heavier. Mass effects are therefore more
important in light nucleii.
Field Effects The effect of the finite size of the
proton in the energy levels in hydrogen can be
calculated using perturbation theory. The
energy shift is
29
 ∆E = ∫∞₀ ᴪ*(r) ∆vᴪ(r) 4𝜋𝑟2dr

∆V is the change in the potential energy

resulting from the difference between a point
charge and some spherical distribution, either
over the surface or volume of a sphere. This
difference is only significant over a very small
range of compared to a Bohr radius a0. So the
wavefunctions are essentially constant over the
range of interest and so can come outside the
integral.
Only the s-states are significantly affected so
using
ᴪ(0)|=1/ π{z/na0}3

The result can be derived. For the charge on the

surface of the nucleus of radius r0 we find:
∆Ens=z4e2r20/6 πꞓ0a30n3
For the ground state of hydrogen the fractional
shift is

∆E1s/E1s=-4/3{r0/a0}2≈−5 × 10-10
30
This is a small effect but important since
uncertainty in knowing the size of a proton
affects experiments to study QED effects.

CHAPTER-6

Conclusion
Atomic physic is the mothe of modern. Atomic
physics, the study of atoms and their
interaction, concludes that atoms consist a
positively charged necleus surrounded by
negatively charged electrons, by the number of
protons. the atoms identity determined and
the behavior of these electrons is governed by
the principles of quantum mechanics. It is most
of space inside the atom is empty. Very few
particle were deflected from their path
indicating pasitive change accupies very little
space. l atom has a small, dense, positively
charged nucleus at its center, containing proton
and neutrons. Negatively charged electrons
orbit the nucleus in specific energy levels or
31
shells. Most of the atom is empty space,with
the nucleu occupying a tiny fraction of the total
volume. Positively charged particles within the
nucleus, determining the elements identity.
Electricallyl neutral particles within the nucleus
contributing to the atoms mass. Negatively
charged particles that orbit the nucleus,
involved in chemical reactions.
The behavior of electrons and other
subatomic particle is governerd by the
principles of quantum mechanics. Electron and
other paricles exhibit both wave-like and
particle-like propreties. Atoms emit of absorb
light at specific wavelenghts, creating unique
spectral patterns that can be used to identity
element. Rutherfords gold foil experiment
showed that atom is mostly empty space with a
tiny, desen, positively-charged nucleus. Based
on these results, rutherford proposed the
nuclear model of the atom.
Bohrs model proposed that electrons obit
the nucleus in specific energy levels or shell.
32
Electrons can jump between energy levels by
absorbing or emitting photons.

REFERENCES
1. Demtroder, W (2006). Atoms.
Molecules and photonls: an itroduction
to atomc, molecular, and quantum-
physics berlin: springer,
2. Svanberg, s (2004). Atomic and
Molecular spectroscopy. Springer.
3. Bell, K.L; Berrington, k,A; crothers,
D.S.F; Hilbert, A; Taylor, K.(2002).
Supercomputing, Collision processes,
and Applications.
4. Amusia, M. ya; Chernysheva, L.V.
(1997). Computation of atomic
processes. Institute of physics
publishing.
5. Blumel, R; Reinhanrdt, W.P(1997). C

33
6. Branasden, BH; joachain,Cj(2002).
Physicss Of Atoms And Molecules (2nd
Ed) Prentices Hall.
7. Sommerfeld, A, (1923) Atomic
Structure And Spectral Lines.(Translated
From German “Atombau Und
Spektrallinien”1921) Dutton Publisher.
8. Bethe, H.A. and Salpeter E.E. (1957)
Quantum Mechanics Of One And Two
Electron Atoms.
9. Born, M.(1937) Atomic Physic.
Blackie and Son Limited

34