Electrons travel in a circular orbit around the nucleus, similar to how planets orbit around the sun.For example, one of the weaknesses of his analysis was not offering a reason for why only certain energy levels or orbitals were allowed. Although this model successfully predicts energy levels of the hydrogen atom, it has major shortcomings once expanded to other atoms and more complex real-world situations. It also provides a decent first-order approximation of more complicated theories. This model is very simplistic and is useful in introducing students to quantum mechanics. Similar to stepping up a staircase, these energy levels are quantized.

The electrons orbit the nucleus at energy levels increasing (n= 1,2,3. In this model, electrons can only exist in discrete energy levels, which are quantized. However, the Bohr Model's incorporation of quantum theory set it apart from other models. His model depicted atoms as having negatively charged electrons which orbited a small, positively charged nuclei containing most of the atom's mass, as Rutherford had done. The Bohr model of the atom was proposed by Niels Bohr in 1913 as an expansion on and correction of the Rutherford model. Main Idea A visualization of the Bohr model and the hydrogen spectrum Bohr's model of the hydrogen atom was the first to incorporate quantum theory, and the key idea of his model was that electrons occupy discrete orbitals. In this model, the electrons orbit the nucleus in circular orbits, accounting for the series of discrete wavelengths in the H2 emission spectrum. The Bohr Model was proposed in 1913 by the physicist Niels Bohr and is a description of the structure of atoms in which there is a dense positive core surrounded by orbiting electrons. Although the Bohr model is regarded as inaccurate and outdated, the model predicts the hydrogen atom well and provides good predictions on quantized energy levels. These concepts are the basis of modern quantum physics and thus are essential to master before progressing to more complex quantum theories and principles. This page gives basic information about the Bohr model of the atom and the quantization of electron angular momentum.

Niels bohr atomic model year