Excited hydrogen atoms are all in the n = 3 state.
How many different photon energies could possibly
be emitted as these atoms return to the
ground state?
(1) 1 (3) 3
(2) 2 (4) 4
The answer is 3, not 2;I don't understand why;According to my reference table(you can find a copy at
http://www.emsc.nysed.gov/osa/reftable/reftablearch/physics02tbl.pdf
)
n=1 is the ground state so my logic was that it releases one photon energy from n=3 to 2 and a second photon energy from n=2 to n=1.Therefore there are only 2 photon energies emitted.Why is my logic incorrect and why is the answer 3?