Wavenumber
Encyclopedia
In the physical science
s, the wavenumber is a property of a wave
, its spatial frequency
, that is proportional to the reciprocal of the wavelength
. It is also the magnitude of the wave vector
. It can be defined as either
For electromagnetic radiation
in vacuum, wavenumber is proportional to frequency
and to photon
energy. Because of this, wavenumbers are used as a unit of energy in spectroscopy
. In the SI units, wavenumber is expressed in units of reciprocal meters (m−1), but in spectroscopy it is usual to give wavenumbers in reciprocal centimeters
(cm−1). The angular wavenumber is expressed in radian
s per meter (rad·m−1).
of the wave vector
, is given by
where ν is the frequency of the wave, λ is the wavelength, ω = 2πν is the angular frequency
of the wave, and vp is the phase velocity
of the wave.
For the special case of an electromagnetic wave in vacuum, where vp = c, k is given by
where E is the energy
of the wave, ħ is the reduced Planck constant, and c is the velocity of light in vacuum.
For the special case of a matter wave, for example an electron wave, in the non-relativistic approximation:
Here p is the momentum
of the particle, m is the mass
of the particle, E is the kinetic energy
of the particle, and ħ is the reduced Planck's constant.
, the wavenumber
of electromagnetic radiation
is defined as
where λ is the wavelength
of the radiation. The wavenumber has dimensions
of reciprocal length
and SI units of reciprocal meters (m−1). Commonly, the quantity is expressed in the cgs unit cm−1, pronounced as reciprocal centimeter or inverse centimeter, and also formerly called the kayser, after Heinrich Kayser
. The historical reason for using this quantity is that it proved to be convenient in the analysis of atomic spectra. Wavenumbers were first used in the calculations of Johannes Rydberg
in the 1880s. The Rydberg–Ritz combination principle of 1908 was also formulated in terms of wavenumbers. A few years later spectral lines could be understood in quantum theory
as differences between energy levels, energy being proportional to wavenumber, or frequency. However, spectroscopic data kept being tabulated in terms of wavenumber rather than frequency or energy, since spectroscopic instruments are typically calibrated in terms of wavelength, independent of the value for the speed of light
or Planck's constant.
For example, the wavenumbers of the emissions lines of hydrogen
atoms are given by
where R is the Rydberg constant
and ni and nf are the principal quantum numbers of the initial and final levels, respectively (ni is greater than nf for emission).
A wavenumber can be converted into energy
E via Planck's relation:
.
In can also be converted in frequency via
where ν is the frequency, and cn is the speed of light in the medium.
In colloquial usage, the unit cm−1 is sometimes referred to as a "wavenumber", which confuses the name of a quantity with that of a unit. Furthermore, spectroscopists often express a quantity proportional to the wavenumber, such as frequency or energy, in cm−1 and leave the appropriate conversion factor as implied. Consequently, a phrase such as "the energy is 300 wavenumbers" should be interpreted or restated as "the energy corresponds to a wavenumber of 300 cm−1." (Analogous statements hold true for the unit m−1.)
Physical science
Physical science is an encompassing term for the branches of natural science and science that study non-living systems, in contrast to the life sciences...
s, the wavenumber is a property of a wave
Wave
In physics, a wave is a disturbance that travels through space and time, accompanied by the transfer of energy.Waves travel and the wave motion transfers energy from one point to another, often with no permanent displacement of the particles of the medium—that is, with little or no associated mass...
, its spatial frequency
Spatial frequency
In mathematics, physics, and engineering, spatial frequency is a characteristic of any structure that is periodic across position in space. The spatial frequency is a measure of how often sinusoidal components of the structure repeat per unit of distance. The SI unit of spatial frequency is...
, that is proportional to the reciprocal of the wavelength
Wavelength
In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.It is usually determined by considering the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase, such as crests, troughs, or zero crossings, and is a...
. It is also the magnitude of the wave vector
Wave vector
In physics, a wave vector is a vector which helps describe a wave. Like any vector, it has a magnitude and direction, both of which are important: Its magnitude is either the wavenumber or angular wavenumber of the wave , and its direction is ordinarily the direction of wave propagation In...
. It can be defined as either
-
= 1/λ, the number of wavelengths per unit distance, where λ is the wavelength, sometimes termed the spectroscopist's wavenumber - k = 2π/λ, the number of wavelengths per 2π of unit distance, sometimes termed the angular or circular wavenumber, but more often simply wavenumber.
For electromagnetic radiation
Electromagnetic radiation
Electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy that exhibits wave-like behavior as it travels through space...
in vacuum, wavenumber is proportional to frequency
Frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time. It is also referred to as temporal frequency.The period is the duration of one cycle in a repeating event, so the period is the reciprocal of the frequency...
and to photon
Photon
In physics, a photon is an elementary particle, the quantum of the electromagnetic interaction and the basic unit of light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation. It is also the force carrier for the electromagnetic force...
energy. Because of this, wavenumbers are used as a unit of energy in spectroscopy
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
. In the SI units, wavenumber is expressed in units of reciprocal meters (m−1), but in spectroscopy it is usual to give wavenumbers in reciprocal centimeters
Reciprocal length
Reciprocal length or inverse length is a measurement used in several branches of science and mathematics. As the reciprocal of length, common units used for this measurement include the reciprocal metre or inverse metre , the reciprocal centimetre or inverse centimetre , and, in optics, the...
(cm−1). The angular wavenumber is expressed in radian
Radian
Radian is the ratio between the length of an arc and its radius. The radian is the standard unit of angular measure, used in many areas of mathematics. The unit was formerly a SI supplementary unit, but this category was abolished in 1995 and the radian is now considered a SI derived unit...
s per meter (rad·m−1).
In wave equations
In general, the angular wavenumber k, the magnitudeMagnitude (mathematics)
The magnitude of an object in mathematics is its size: a property by which it can be compared as larger or smaller than other objects of the same kind; in technical terms, an ordering of the class of objects to which it belongs....
of the wave vector
Wave vector
In physics, a wave vector is a vector which helps describe a wave. Like any vector, it has a magnitude and direction, both of which are important: Its magnitude is either the wavenumber or angular wavenumber of the wave , and its direction is ordinarily the direction of wave propagation In...
, is given by
where ν is the frequency of the wave, λ is the wavelength, ω = 2πν is the angular frequency
Angular frequency
In physics, angular frequency ω is a scalar measure of rotation rate. Angular frequency is the magnitude of the vector quantity angular velocity...
of the wave, and vp is the phase velocity
Phase velocity
The phase velocity of a wave is the rate at which the phase of the wave propagates in space. This is the speed at which the phase of any one frequency component of the wave travels. For such a component, any given phase of the wave will appear to travel at the phase velocity...
of the wave.
For the special case of an electromagnetic wave in vacuum, where vp = c, k is given by
where E is the energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
of the wave, ħ is the reduced Planck constant, and c is the velocity of light in vacuum.
For the special case of a matter wave, for example an electron wave, in the non-relativistic approximation:
Here p is the momentum
Momentum
In classical mechanics, linear momentum or translational momentum is the product of the mass and velocity of an object...
of the particle, m is the mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
of the particle, E is the kinetic energy
Kinetic energy
The kinetic energy of an object is the energy which it possesses due to its motion.It is defined as the work needed to accelerate a body of a given mass from rest to its stated velocity. Having gained this energy during its acceleration, the body maintains this kinetic energy unless its speed changes...
of the particle, and ħ is the reduced Planck's constant.
In spectroscopy
In spectroscopySpectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
, the wavenumber
of electromagnetic radiationElectromagnetic radiation
Electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy that exhibits wave-like behavior as it travels through space...
is defined as
where λ is the wavelength
Wavelength
In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.It is usually determined by considering the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase, such as crests, troughs, or zero crossings, and is a...
of the radiation. The wavenumber has dimensions
Dimensional analysis
In physics and all science, dimensional analysis is a tool to find or check relations among physical quantities by using their dimensions. The dimension of a physical quantity is the combination of the basic physical dimensions which describe it; for example, speed has the dimension length per...
of reciprocal length
Reciprocal length
Reciprocal length or inverse length is a measurement used in several branches of science and mathematics. As the reciprocal of length, common units used for this measurement include the reciprocal metre or inverse metre , the reciprocal centimetre or inverse centimetre , and, in optics, the...
and SI units of reciprocal meters (m−1). Commonly, the quantity is expressed in the cgs unit cm−1, pronounced as reciprocal centimeter or inverse centimeter, and also formerly called the kayser, after Heinrich Kayser
Heinrich Kayser
Heinrich Gustav Johannes Kayser was a German physicist.He was born at Bingen am Rhein. Kayser's early work was concerned with the characteristics of acoustic waves. He discovered the occurrence of helium in the Earth's atmosphere. Together with Carl Runge, he examined the spectra of chemical...
. The historical reason for using this quantity is that it proved to be convenient in the analysis of atomic spectra. Wavenumbers were first used in the calculations of Johannes Rydberg
Johannes Rydberg
Johannes Robert Rydberg, , , was a Swedish physicist mainly known for devising the Rydberg formula, in 1888, which is used to predict the wavelengths of photons emitted by changes in the energy level of an electron in a hydrogen atom.The physical constant known as the...
in the 1880s. The Rydberg–Ritz combination principle of 1908 was also formulated in terms of wavenumbers. A few years later spectral lines could be understood in quantum theory
Quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...
as differences between energy levels, energy being proportional to wavenumber, or frequency. However, spectroscopic data kept being tabulated in terms of wavenumber rather than frequency or energy, since spectroscopic instruments are typically calibrated in terms of wavelength, independent of the value for the speed of light
Speed of light
The speed of light in vacuum, usually denoted by c, is a physical constant important in many areas of physics. Its value is 299,792,458 metres per second, a figure that is exact since the length of the metre is defined from this constant and the international standard for time...
or Planck's constant.
For example, the wavenumbers of the emissions lines of 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...
atoms are given by
where R is the Rydberg constant
Rydberg constant
The Rydberg constant, symbol R∞, named after the Swedish physicist Johannes Rydberg, is a physical constant relating to atomic spectra in the science of spectroscopy. Rydberg initially determined its value empirically from spectroscopy, but Niels Bohr later showed that its value could be calculated...
and ni and nf are the principal quantum numbers of the initial and final levels, respectively (ni is greater than nf for emission).
A wavenumber can be converted into energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
E via Planck's relation:
.In can also be converted in frequency via
where ν is the frequency, and cn is the speed of light in the medium.
In colloquial usage, the unit cm−1 is sometimes referred to as a "wavenumber", which confuses the name of a quantity with that of a unit. Furthermore, spectroscopists often express a quantity proportional to the wavenumber, such as frequency or energy, in cm−1 and leave the appropriate conversion factor as implied. Consequently, a phrase such as "the energy is 300 wavenumbers" should be interpreted or restated as "the energy corresponds to a wavenumber of 300 cm−1." (Analogous statements hold true for the unit m−1.)