Question

Describe what subatomic particle is involved in light emission.

A) Protons absorb energy to travel from the nucleus through the atom emitting light along the way.
B) When the nucleus absorbs sunlight, photons move to a higher energy level and are then released.
C) Light is emitted as the electron falls from the excited state to the ground state releasing a photon.
D) As light is emitted, energy from sunlight is absorbed by the atom to excite a photon into a higher level.

Answer 1

Option C= light is emitted as electron falls from the excited state to the ground state releasing a photon.

Step-by-step explanation:

Electrons are responsible for the production of colored light.

Electron:

The electron is subatomic particle that revolve around outside the nucleus and has negligible mass. It has a negative charge.

Symbol= e-

Mass= 9.10938356×10⁻³¹ Kg

It was discovered by j. j. Thomson in 1897 during the study of cathode ray properties.

How electrons produce the colored light:

Excitation:

When the energy is provided to the atom the electrons by absorbing the energy jump to the higher energy levels. This process is called excitation. The amount of energy absorbed by the electron is exactly equal to the energy difference of orbits.

De-excitation:

When the excited electron fall back to the lower energy levels the energy is released in the form of radiations. this energy is exactly equal to the energy difference between the orbits. The characteristics bright colors are due to the these emitted radiations. These emitted radiations can be seen if they are fall in the visible region of spectrum.