Hydrogen

Properties of hydrogen atoms

Ionisation Energies and electron affinity

The electron affinity of hydrogen is 72.8  kJ mol^-1. The ionisation energies of hydrogen are given below.

Electronic configuration

The following represents the electronic configuration and its associated term symbol for the ground state neutral gaseous atom. The configuration associated with hydrogen in its compounds is not necessarily the same.

• Ground state electron configuration:  1s¹
• Shell structure:  1
• Term symbol:   ²S_1/2

In 1885 Balmer found a simple mathematical relationship between the wavelengths of the then 14 known lines of H; a major milestone in the history of our understanding of the basis of all spectra.

A schematic representation of the shell structure of hydrogen - not what the atom of hydrogen "looks like".

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