Hydrogen spectral series
Overview
 
The emission spectrum
Emission spectrum
The emission spectrum of a chemical element or chemical compound is the spectrum of frequencies of electromagnetic radiation emitted by the element's atoms or the compound's molecules when they are returned to a lower energy state....

 of atomic hydrogen
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...

 is divided into a number of spectral series, with wavelengths given by the Rydberg formula
Rydberg formula
The Rydberg formula is used in atomic physics to describe the wavelengths of spectral lines of many chemical elements. It was formulated by the Swedish physicist Johannes Rydberg, and presented on November 5, 1888.-History:...

. These observed spectral lines are due to electrons moving between energy levels in the atom. The spectral series are important in astronomy for detecting the presence of hydrogen and calculating red shift
Red shift
-Science:* Redshift, the increase of wavelength of detected electromagnetic radiation with respect to the original wavelength of the emission* Red shift, an informal term for a bathochromic shift...

s. Further series were discovered as spectroscopy techniques developed.
In physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...

, the spectral lines of hydrogen correspond to particular jumps of the electron
Electron
The electron is a subatomic particle with a negative elementary electric charge. It has no known components or substructure; in other words, it is generally thought to be an elementary particle. An electron has a mass that is approximately 1/1836 that of the proton...

 between energy level
Energy level
A quantum mechanical system or particle that is bound -- that is, confined spatially—can only take on certain discrete values of energy. This contrasts with classical particles, which can have any energy. These discrete values are called energy levels...

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