Tagged Questions

1
vote
1answer
30 views

Minimum atomic clearance permitting motion

Suppose you were to build the piston and cylinder in a car engine atom-by-atom. Let's just say carbon, since you can make a lot of different shapes due to it's high valence. So assuming you make the ...
0
votes
1answer
114 views

How electrons act under rotating magnetic field?

I study Power Engineering in University. Today I asked my lecturer to explain me exactly how atom's electrons act under spinning rotor's magnetic field, that generated dynamic electricity. But he even ...
0
votes
1answer
222 views

Why isn't Hydrogen's electron pulled into the nucleus? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Why do electrons occupy the space around nuclei, and not collide with them? Why don’t electrons crash into the nuclei they “orbit”? From what I learned in chemistry, ...
7
votes
2answers
286 views

why dosen't a charged particle radiate energy in circular motion in a uniform magnetic field?

I have studied in my Physics course that one of the drawbacks of Rutherford's atomic model was that when an electron will revolve around the nucleus, it is undergoing acceleration and so it should ...
3
votes
2answers
124 views

Why is there a factor of 1/2 in the interaction energy of an induced dipole with the field that induces it?

In this paper, there's the following sentence: ...and the factor 1/2 takes into account that the dipole moment is an induced, not a permanent one. Without any further explanation. I looked ...
2
votes
2answers
257 views

Why does optical pumping of Rubidium require presence of magnetic field?

The optical pumping experiment of Rubidium requires the presence of magnetic field, but I don't understand why. The basic principle of pumping is that the selection rule forbids transition from ...
21
votes
3answers
1k views

Why do we need 12 atoms to store 1 bit of data?

Recent research at IBM has found a way to store 1 bit of data in 12 atoms. While that is a big accomplishment compared to what we have today, it does seem like a waste to a non-physics eye like me. ...
18
votes
3answers
3k views

Why don't electrons crash into the nuclei they “orbit”?

I'm having trouble understanding the simple "planetary" model of the atom that I'm being taught in my basic chemistry course. In particular, I can't see how a negatively charged electron can stay ...