Atomic electron transition

In <a href="/facts/Atomic_physics/7Jlm4I7k">atomic physics</a> and <a href="/facts/Chemistry/SrNqkGVm">chemistry</a>, an atomic electron transition (also called an atomic transition, quantum jump, or quantum leap) is an <a href="/facts/Electron/L0KBo5cW">electron</a> changing from one <a href="/facts/Energy_level/66x51Khc">energy level</a> to another within an <a href="/facts/Atom/FoQ4kGN5">atom</a> or <a href="/facts/Artificial_atom/K5Ytv8Yw">artificial atom</a>. The time scale of a quantum jump has not been measured experimentally. However, the <a href="/facts/Franck%E2%80%93Condon_principle/eI6xvEuD">Franck–Condon principle</a> binds the upper limit of this parameter to the order of <a href="/facts/Attosecond/G1ynD8f9">attoseconds</a>.
Electrons can relax into states of lower energy by emitting <a href="/facts/Electromagnetic_radiation/Ynx7ujCW">electromagnetic radiation</a> in the form of a photon. Electrons can also absorb passing photons, which excites the electron into a state of higher energy. The larger the energy separation between the electron's initial and final state, the shorter the photons' <a href="/facts/Wavelength/kcJU0ymz">wavelength</a>.

Atomic electron transition open-in-new

Atomic electron transition