PHYS 1070 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Kinetic Energy, Rotational Energy, Phosphorescence
25 Mar 2015
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Phys1070: intro physics for life sci - lecture 22: vibrational and rotational energy, Molecules can be excited in other ways. Chemical bonds between atoms act like springs and atoms vibrate back and forth in the molecule. The molecule can also rotate and the rotational excitation is also quantized. When light is absorbed and the molecule is excited to its 1st excited pi electron state, it can also be in any of the large number of excited vibrational and rotational excited states. Each level has a slightly different energy and corresponds to the absorption of a slightly different wavelength of light. The sum of all these different excitations that gives the broad and continuous absorption peaks. Light comes in and is absorbed leading to some vibrational and rotational excitation of the 1st pi electron excited state. The vibrational and rotational energy is converted to translational kinetic energy (heat) through collisions with other molecules.
