Electron Emission of Light

[Arielle Gabalski 2G]

Lets say that light energy comes in and has a short enough wavelength to remove an electron from the atom and bring it up to an n=4 level. When the electron returns to the ground state it is going to emit light energy in different colors (the atomic spectra).

However, will it emit a specific color for every energy level that it goes down to? For example when it goes down from n=4 to n=3 it will emit red light, but then when it goes from n=3 to n=2 it will emit blue light? Or will it just emit one color in total as it returns to the ground state?

[Mieka McFarlane 2L]

If I am understanding this right the electron does not stop in the process of returning to its ground state but rather it just drop straight back releasing the same original amount of energy needed to excite the electron.( I think this is because an electron in n1 that is excited to n2 would have to return to its original shell as soon as possible because it disrupts the electron configuration of that particular atom). Also taking into consideration that the energy absorbed must be the same energy released as it is. There can’t be a different frequency and a different wavelength being emitted as the electron drops “law of conservation of energy”.