The hydrogen atom is the simplest of all atoms consisting of proton of charge e and the electron of charge −e. It is a two particle system. A two-body problem can always be reduced to a one-body problem by choosing the center of mass coordinate and the relative coordinates. In the hydrogen atom the attractive force exerted by the proton on electron prevents it from escape. The potential energy V of the system is −e2/r where r is the distance between the electron and the proton. Suppose the nucleus is held fixed at the origin of coordinates. V (r) is independent of θ and φ, that is, insensitive to the direction of r and depends only on the scalar magnitude r. The potential energy remains invariant under rotation and is said to be spherically symmetric. Figure 12.1 shows V (r) as a function of r. In this chapter the hydrogen atom problem in threedimension is solved and momentum eigenfunction is obtained. The problem in D-dimension where D may be noninteger is analysed. The magnetic field produced by a hydrogen atom is worked out. Finally, the system in parabolic coordinates is discussed.
The hydrogen atom is the simplest of all atoms consisting of proton of charge e and the electron of charge −e. It is a two particle system. A two-body problem can always be reduced to a one-body problem by choosing the center of mass coordinate and the relative coordinates. In the hydrogen atom the attractive force exerted by the proton on electron prevents it from escape. The potential energy V of the system is −e2/r where r is the distance between the electron and the proton. Suppose the nucleus is held fixed at the origin of coordinates. V (r) is independent of θ and φ, that is, insensitive to the direction of r and depends only on the scalar magnitude r. The potential energy remains invariant under rotation and is said to be spherically symmetric. Figure 12.1 shows V (r) as a function of r. In this chapter the hydrogen atom problem in threedimension is solved and momentum eigenfunction is obtained. The problem in D-dimension where D may be noninteger is analysed. The magnetic field produced by a hydrogen atom is worked out. Finally, the system in parabolic coordinates is discussed.
The hydrogen atom is the simplest of all atoms consisting of proton of charge e and the electron of charge -e. It is a two particle system. A two-body problem can always be reduced to a one-body problem by choosing the centre of mass coordinate and the relative coordinates. The existence of degenerate energy eigenvalues implies that linear combination of the corresponding eigenfunctions are solutions of the wave equation with the same energy. The isotopes of atomic hydrogen, deuterium and tritium also provide examples of hydrogenic systems. Since the mass of deuterium is md˜2mp and that of tritium is mt˜3mp, the reduced masses of them will be slightly different from that of hydrogen. In addition to deuterium and tritium, there exists other hydrogenic systems in which the role of proton is played by another positive particle.
The hydrogen atom is the Rosetta stone of the early twentieth century atomic physics. The attempt to decipher its structure and properties led to the development of quantum mechanics and the unraveling of many of the mysteries of atomic, molecular, and solid state physics, and a good deal of chemistry and modern biology. Unlike the various one-dimensional model problems that we have been studying in the previous chapters, the hydrogen atom is a real physical system in three dimensions. It consists of an electron moving in a spherically symmetric potential well due to the Coulomb attraction of the positively charged nucleus. In three dimensions, the electron is not constrained to move linearly. It can execute orbital motions and, thus, has angular momentum. Not only is the total energy of the electron in the atom quantized, its angular momentum also has interesting and unexpected quantized properties that cannot possibly be understood on the basis of classical mechanics and electrodynamics. They are, however, the natural and necessary consequences of the basic postulates of quantum mechanics, as will be shown in this chapter. According to classical mechanics and electrodynamics, it is not possible to have a stable structure consisting of a small positively charged nucleus at the center of an electrically neutral atom with an electron sitting in its vicinity. For the electron not to be attracted into the positive charge, it must be orbiting around the nucleus so that the centrifugal force will counter the Coulomb attraction of the nucleus and maintain a constant electron orbit.
Introduction I give in this chapter the quantum-mechanical description of an atom. I look in some detail at the hydrogen atom, which is the simplest atom we have, with just one proton and one electron. From the picture that emerges, we shall be able to see how to describe all other atoms. Before continuing, I need to explain what I mean when I say that the proton and electron have equal and opposite electric charges. It is because of these charges that the atom is stable, and does not spontaneously break up into the two separate particles. Electric charge and potential energy If I take a ball in my hand and then let go, it drops to the floor. This is because of the gravitational interaction between the ball and the earth. The ball had gravitational potential energy when I held it, and when I release it, this energy is progressively converted to kinetic energy as it falls. Gravitation makes two bodies move towards each other, and not away from each other: the gravitational force is always attractive. As a result of many experiments done over the years, we find that there is another kind of force in nature, somewhat analogous to, but in one aspect different from, gravitation. I take two idealized examples, and use them to show the features of this force. First I consider two electrons that I imagine to be pinned down a distance r apart.
Chapter 12 uses the results presented in the previous chapter to deal with systems consisting of two particles interacting via a central potential. It therefore begins by transforming the Hamiltonian of the two-particle system into one that separates the center-of-mass motion from the relative motion. When the potential is spherically symmetric, the relative motion is conveniently described in spherical coordinates to take advantage of the conservation of angular momentum and the solution of the corresponding eigenvalue problem. The chapter contains a detailed discussion of the rigid rotor and the free particle, as well as the selection rules for angular momentum, in preparation for the study of the most important problem of atomic physics, the hydrogen atom. The H spectrum is discussed in detail, and the introduction of minimal coupling to the electromagnetic field allows for a discussion of the normal Zeeman effect as well as the Aharonov-Bohm effect.
The hydrogen atom can be considered a two-particle system, an electron and a proton, with the Coulomb potential acting between them. This chapter shows how to solve the Schrodinger equation for the wave function of the two-particle system. It introduces the coordinates of the center of mass, which will allow us to split the Schrodinger equation into two independent equations, one for the center of mass motion and another for the relative motion of the electron and proton. The left- hand side of the Schrodinger equation depends solely on the spatial variables, whereas the right-hand side depends solely on time. The wave function can be written as a product of the spatial and time-dependent parts. It is very similar in form to the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom except it involves two Laplacians. Since the Laplacians act on separate variables, the chapter helps to solve the Schrodinger equation using the method of separate variables.
Abstract This chapter reiterates the quantum numbers for atomic orbitals, known from general chemistry, and places them into the context developed so far. It is sketched how the Schrodinger equation (SE) for the hydrogen atom hydrogen-like systems (one electron plus a nucleus of charge Z) is set up. When the nucleus is treated as a fixed point charge, the SE is only for the electron. The solutions of the SE can be obtained by switching to spherical polar coordinates, such that the variables are separable in terms of the electron distance from the nucleus, r, and two angles. The kinetic energy of the electron then has a radial component, and an angular component. The latter is associated with the angular momentum quantum number, which is codified by the letters s, p, d, f, and so forth. A step by step solution of the SE is provided later, in chapter 19.