Why Does the Absorption Spectrum Have Fewer Lines Than the Emission Spectrum?

[Redbok]

I found an emission spectrum and an absorption spectrum of some element in my book. The lines match, but there are less lines in the absorption spectrum... What's the meaning of this? All other examples I found on the internet have the same amount of lines, which seems pretty logic to me.

 

[pam]

Some of the emission lines are from one excited state to another.
These lines do not appear in absorption on the ground state.

 

[sir-pinski]

The emission and absorption spectra of an element are related but represent different processes. In emission spectroscopy, the element is excited and emits light at specific wavelengths, producing a spectrum with distinct lines. In absorption spectroscopy, the element absorbs specific wavelengths of light, resulting in a spectrum with missing lines or dark lines.

The fact that there are fewer lines in the absorption spectrum compared to the emission spectrum is expected. This is because not all wavelengths of light are absorbed by the element, only certain ones. The missing lines in the absorption spectrum correspond to the wavelengths of light that were absorbed by the element. The remaining lines in the absorption spectrum are the wavelengths of light that were not absorbed and therefore appear as bright lines.

The number of lines in the emission and absorption spectra may vary depending on the specific element and its energy levels. It is also possible that the book and online examples you found are for different elements, which could explain the difference in the number of lines.

In summary, the difference in the number of lines between the emission and absorption spectra is due to the different processes involved and the specific characteristics of the element being studied.