Definition of Rydberg atom in English:
Rydberg atom
nounˈrɪdbəːɡˈridˌbərɡ ˌadəm
Physics An atom in a highly excited state in which one electron has almost sufficient energy to escape. Atoms, usually hydrogen atoms, in this Rydberg state are used in atomic research.
Example sentencesExamples
- Raithel's work suggests that the first few free electrons are not produced by Rydberg atom collisions but when Rydberg atoms are photoionized by black-body radiation.
- During the last two years, theoretical studies were performed on a variety of topics related to collisions involving Rydberg atoms.
- We show that it is possible to excite, and then trap, one and only one Rydberg atom from a cloud of ground state atoms confined on a magnetic atom chip, itself integrated with the Rydberg trap.
Origin
Named after J. R. Rydberg (see Rydberg constant).