Why do different metals glow with different colours if all solids have the same emission spectrum? Why do different metals glow with different colors if all solids have the same emission spectrum?  According to my teacher, all solids have the same emission spectrum at the same temperature due to atoms being really close to each other. If this holds true, then why do different metals glow with different colours when warmed up?
 A: All materials do not have the same emission spectrum. This is only true when the metal samples are hot enough to glow with heat. at room temperature, there is no glow in visible light and the light coming off an object is reflected light from somewhere else.
Depending on the details of the electron shell structure surrounding a metal atom, there will be some wavelengths of incident light which are absorbed instead of being reflected and the resulting reflected light will be missing some wavelengths. This is why gold appears yellow, copper is orange, nickel is slightly yellowish, and so on.
A: The reason different metals glow with different colors is because each metal has a unique electron configuration and different energy levels, which affect the way the electrons absorb and emit energy.
When heated, the electrons in the metal absorb energy and move to higher energy levels. As they relax back to their original energy levels, they emit energy in the form of light. The wavelength of the light emitted is dependent on the metal's unique energy levels, which is why different metals glow with different colors.
