structure of atom

Question

how many maximum spectral lines are possible if electron is present in 4th shell and only two atoms are present in sample?

Answer 1

Hello, thank you for taking the time to post your question!

In order to solve this one I think it wants you to use the formula

Number of spectral lines = n*(n - 1)/2, where n is the initial principal quantum number (meaning the shell the electron is in)

In this case since n = 4 is given in the question the calculation should be

4*(4 – 1)/2

=4*3/2

=12/2

=6

So the maximum number of different spectral lines possible is 6

I hope that helps get you moving in the right direction! Feel free to reach out if you have any additional questions beyond that :)

Answer 2

Shivam, this is a poorly structured question. You don't say what the atom is, or whether lower shells are empty or full. And it's a bit of a red herring to say that there's a second atom present -- what is it, is it bonded, free, in a plasma or Bose-Einstein condensate, or what? Also, are we talking absorption or emission spectra? There's just too many possibilities here (an infinite number of absorption lines, for example).