Shown below is a qualitative diagram of the atomic orbital energies for an Na atom. The number of orbitals in each subshell is not shown.

(d) A sodium vapor lamp (Figure 7.23) operates by using electricity to excite the highest-energy electron to the next highest-energy level. Light is produced when the excited electron drops back to the lower level. Which two energy levels are involved in this process for the Na atom?

Video transcript

Hello everyone today. The following diagram below is an approximation of sub shell energies for the neon atom note the number or of orbital's or the number of electrons not shown. A neon lamp is constructed using two electrons and close in a glass shell that is filled with 99.5% gas at a pressure of 120 tour. Like when electricity passes through the lamp and electronic is excited to a higher energy level photons of light or release when the electron falls back to its original energy level, identify which energy levels are involved in this process. So the first thing we wanna do is we want to draw on our diagram for the atom neon and so we want to note that the highest level of neon Is the two p orbital. So this two p orbital here filling our electrons. Each atom is going to have one S orbital. And so we're gonna go ahead and fill this one s orbital up. Two electrons per orbital, one arrow going up when they're going down. We do the same for two S for two P. Since neon is the sixth element in the two P block, it's going to have all of its orbital's completely filled. And so to do that, we must first draw an outwards arrow in each orbital and then pair them up with a downward arrow. So now we've completed the electron diagram for neon. We also noted that the electron must be excited now from the two P to the three S block. So we say that the electron is excited from two P To three S. Using electrical energy, and when it emits light, so we'll say, the electron emits light When it falls back from the three s into the two p as a photon. And so this is our final answer. I hope this helped, and until next time.