Orbitals part3

3D Model

It seems quite easy to explain why when two or more electrons interact with each other, they gather in some places and have different energies.

However in the hydrogen atom there is only one electron, which, as one could expect, should always occupy spherical orbitals of different sizes according to its energy. It turns out that there are many electron states at a given energy. For example at -13,6 eV/16 there are 16 states.

The orbital of state 4f0 has a unique shape (shown in violet). States 4f1 and 4f-1 (blue) are twins, so are 4f2 and 4f-2 (yellow) and 4f3 and 4f-3 (reddish). Orbitals can look the same, but the electron moves in different ways in each of the states.

We cannot detect the bubbles in experiments. They are predicted by quantum mechanics. It says that particles behave like waves.

You probably saw standing waves on a string or a spring. Such waves on plates are known as Chladni figures. Here they are in 3D space. The bubbles are their antinodes.

To see nodes proceed to part 4.