Balmer Series

Atoms and molecules exhibit very interesting behavior when they absorb and release energy. The electrons in an atom traditionally exist at their lowest energy state, called the ground state, and labeled as n equal to one. However, when an atom absorbs energy, the electrons become excited and move to a higher energy level. When the electrons relax down to either a lower energy state or to the ground state, the excess energy is released as emitted light.

You may be familiar with these energy states, as they are depicted in the Bohr Model, which describes an atom as a nucleus with orbiting electrons in shells or orbitals. These shells are the same as the energy levels and are labeled by n. The wavelength of the emitted light depends on the difference between the high and low energy levels. High energy emitted light results from electrons relaxing from a higher energy level, and low energy emitted light results from electrons relaxing from a lower energy level.

The emission spectrum is a measure of emitted radiation across a range of wavelengths. With pure elemental species, the emission behavior appears as lines of specific wavelengths rather than a broad spectrum. Since different ato