page_title: Rydberg formula
hierarchical_section_title: Rydberg formula
caption_attribution_description: The Rydberg formula as presented to Matematiskt-Fysiska förening.
context_page_description: In atomic physics, the Rydberg formula calculates the wavelengths of a spectral line in many chemical elements. The formular primarily presented as a generalization of the Balmer series for all atomic electron transitions of hydrogen. It was first empirically stated in 1888 by the Swedish physicist Johannes Rydberg, then theoretically by Niels Bohr in 1913, who used a primitive form of quantum mechanics. The formula directly generalizes the equations used to calculate the wavelengths of the hydrogen spectral series.
context_section_description: In atomic physics, the Rydberg formula calculates the wavelengths of a spectral line in many chemical elements. The formular primarily presented as a generalization of the Balmer series for all atomic electron transitions of hydrogen. It was first empirically stated in 1888 by the Swedish physicist Johannes Rydberg, then theoretically by Niels Bohr in 1913, who used a primitive form of quantum mechanics. The formula directly generalizes the equations used to calculate the wavelengths of the hydrogen spectral series.
caption: Rydberg's formula as it appears in a November 1888 record
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