Question

An electron in a hydrogen atom moves from level 3 to level 1. In a second hydrogen atom, an electron drops from level 2 to level 1. Which statement describes the most likely result?

The first atom emits light with more energy.
The second atom emits light with more energy.
The first and second atoms absorb energy without emitting light.
The first and second atoms emit light with the same amount of energy.

Answer 1

The first atom emits light with more energy.

Answer 2

The correct option is this: THE FIRST ATOM EMITS LIGHT WITH MORE ENERGY.

In the question given above, the level 1 mentioned in the question refers to the ground state of the electrons while level 2 and level 3 refer to excited states of hydrogen electrons. When an atom is in an excited state, it possess more energy and it is unstable, thus, it tends to return to the ground state after sometime to attain stability. As the atom return to the ground state, it loses its energy by emitting light. The higher the level of excitation, the more the light that will be emitted when the atom is returning to the ground state. Thus, an atom returning to the ground state from level 3 has more energy and will emit more light when returning to the ground state than an electron in level 2.