Solid State Electronic Devices, 7th Edition

2.5 Atomic Structure and the Periodic Table

The Schrödinger equation describes accurately the interactions of particles with potential fields, such as electrons within atoms. Indeed, the modern understanding of atomic theory (the modern atomic models) comes from the wave equation and from Heisenberg’s matrix mechanics. It should be pointed out, however, that the problem of solving the Schrödinger equation directly for complicated atoms is extremely difficult. In fact, only the hydrogen atom is generally solved directly; atoms of atomic number greater than one are usually handled by techniques involving approximations. Many atoms such as the alkali metals (Li, Na, etc.), which have a neutral core with a single electron in an outer orbit, can ...