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The energy of a linear harmonic oscillator in the third excited state is 0.2 eV. Find the frequency of vibration.

a. 0.2 Hz
b. 0.4 Hz
c. 0.6 Hz
d. 0.8 Hz

1 Answer

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Final answer:

The frequency of a harmonic oscillator in the third excited state with an energy of 0.2 eV is approximately 1.38 × 10^13 Hz, which is not among the given options.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the frequency of vibration for a linear harmonic oscillator in the third excited state with an energy of 0.2 eV, we use the quantum mechanical formula for the energy levels of a harmonic oscillator:

En = (n + 1/2)hv

Where En is the energy of the nth quantum state, n is the quantum number (> 0 for the ground state), h is Planck's constant (4.135667696 × 10-15 eV·s), and v is the frequency of the oscillator.

For the third excited state (n=3), the energy is:

E3 = (3 + 1/2)hv = 0.2 eV

We can solve for the frequency (v):

v = E3 / (3.5h)

v = 0.2 eV / (3.5 × 4.135667696 × 10-15 eV·s)

v ≈ 1.38 × 1013 Hz

Therefore, the frequency of vibration of the oscillator is approximately 1.38 × 1013 Hz, none of the provided options (a. 0.2 Hz, b. 0.4 Hz, c. 0.6 Hz, d. 0.8 Hz) are correct.

User Yingqiang Gao
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