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Science Physics Atomic, molecular and optical physics

Atomic, molecular and optical physics

Molecular physics

Angle of incidence (optics)

Angle between a ray incident on a surface and the line perpendicular to the surface at the point of incidence

Hole or opening through which light travels

Smallest unit of a chemical element

Core of the atom; composed of bound nucleons (protons and neutrons)

Function describing an electron in an atom

Field of physics

Azimuthal quantum number

Quantum number for an atomic orbital that determines its orbital angular momentum and describes the shape of the orbital, and is symbolized as ℓ

Beer–Lambert law

Law describing absorption of light

Energy required to separate particles

Optical phenomenon

Atomic model introduced by Niels Bohr in 1913

Circular polarization

Polarization state

Cross section (physics)

Probability of a given process occurring in a particle collision

Degenerate energy levels

Energy level of a quantum system that corresponds to two or more different measurable states

Density functional theory

Computational quantum mechanical modelling method to investigate the electronic structure

Dispersion (optics)

Dependence of phase velocity on frequency

Einstein coefficients

Quantities describing probability of absorption or emission of light

Electron configuration

Mode of arrangement of electrons in different shells of an atom

Principal energy levels in atomic physics

Emission spectrum

Frequencies of light emitted by atoms or chemical compounds

Different states of quantum systems

Neutral composite particle with some components not found in normal atoms

Details in the emission spectrum of an atom

Measure of how strongly an optical system converges or diverges light

A point in an optical system where light rays originating from a point on the object converge

Study of classical optics using Fourier transforms

Fresnel equations

Equations of light transmission and reflection

Geometrical optics

Model of optics describing light as geometric rays

History of atomic theory

Spectral line of hydrogen state transition in UHF radio fequencies

Hydrogen spectral series

Important atomic emission spectra

Deep-red spectral line of hydrogen

Hyperfine structure

Small shifts and splittings in the energy levels of atoms, molecules and ions

Nucleus which contains at least one hyperon

Luminous flux incident on a surface per area

Intensity (physics)

Power transferred per unit area

Ion (disambiguation)

Topics referred to by the same term

Nuclides having the same atomic number but different mass numbers

Linear polarization

Confinement of the electric field vector or magnetic field vector to a given plane along the direction of propagation

Physical quantity

Luminous intensity

Visible light per unit solid angle

Magnetic quantum number

Third in a set of four quantum numbers that distinguishes the orbitals available within a subshell and can be used to calculate the azimuthal component of the orientation of orbital in space

Molecular dynamics

Computer simulations to discover and understand chemical properties

Molecular orbital

Wave-like behavior of an electron in a molecule

Molecular orbital theory

One of two foundational theories of quantum chemistry

Molecular physics

Study of the physical and chemical properties of molecules

Nonlinear optics

Branch of physics

Particle that makes up the atomic nucleus (proton or neutron)

Bound state of a particle and its antiparticle

Property of an object or substance that is impervious to light

Optical coating

Material which alters light reflection or transmission on optics

Natural logarithm of the ratio of incident to transmitted radiant power through a material; the absorbance × ln(10)

Physical quantity

Optical pumping

Method of population inversion

OPTICS algorithm

Algorithm for finding density based clusters in spatial data

Chemical species containing a positively-charged oxygen with 3 bonds

Photometry (optics)

Science of the measurement of light in terms of perceived brightness

Branch of physics related to the technical applications of light

Physical optics

Branch of optics

Plum pudding model

First modern model of the atom

Polarization (waves)

Property of waves that can oscillate with more than one orientation

Bound state of an electron and positron

Principal quantum number

One of four quantum numbers which are assigned to each electron in an atom to describe that electron's state

Idealized model of light

Rayleigh scattering

The scattering of electromagnetic radiation by particles smaller than the radiation's wavelength

Reflection (physics)

"Bouncing back" of waves at an interface

Reflection coefficient

Measure of wave reflectivity

Physics; change in direction of a wave

Refractive index

Ratio of the speed of light in vacuum to that in the medium

Model of rotating physical systems

Rotational spectroscopy

Spectroscopy of quantized rotational states of gases

Rotational–vibrational spectroscopy

Difference between rotation and revolution

Rutherford model

Model of the atom devised by Ernest Rutherford

Rutherford scattering experiments

Experiments proving existence of atomic nuclei

Rutherford scattering experiments

Elastic scattering of charged particles by the Coulomb interaction

Rydberg formula

Formula for spectral line wavelengths in alkali metals

Area where direct light from a light source cannot reach due to obstruction by an object

Formula for refraction angles

Optical phenomenon

Spherical harmonics

Special mathematical functions defined on the surface of a sphere

Spin quantum number

Quantum number parameterizing spin and angular momentum

Spin–orbit interaction

Relativistic interaction of a particle's spin with its motion inside a potential

Spontaneous emission

Quantum mechanical state change

Energy level splitting via a static electric field

Stimulated emission

Process by which an incoming photon of a specific frequency can interact with an excited atomic electron (or other excited molecular state), causing it to drop to a lower energy level

Stokes parameters

Set of values that describe the polarization state of electromagnetic radiation

Total internal reflection

Optical phenomenon in which light is completely reflected at the boundary between a medium with a high index of refraction and a medium with a lower one

Transmission coefficient

Coefficient describing the amplitude, intensity, or total power of a transmitted wave relative to an incident wave

Transparency and translucency

Property of an object or substance to transmit light with minimal scattering

Image formed by optics or spherical mirrors,that diminished or magnified.

Effect of splitting a spectral line into several components in the presence of a static magnetic field