Question

When an electron in a rarefied gas atom absorbs a photon, from which energy state to which energy state does the electron transition?

Options

• From the atom completely to free space

• From a higher energy state to a lower energy state

• Between two states of equal energy

• From a lower energy state to a higher energy state

Answer 1

During absorption, an atom in a lower energy state absorbs a photon and transitions to a higher energy state. This is opposite to emission, where an electron falls from a higher to a lower energy state. The photon energy must exactly match the energy difference between these two states.