Question

Who proposed the elliptical orbits of electron in the atom ?

Answer 1

In order to explain the observed fine structure of spectral lines, Sommerfeld introduced two main modifications in Bohr’s theory. They are:

(i) According to Sommerfeld, the path of an electron around the nucleus, in general, is an ellipse with the nucleus at one of its foci.

(ii) The velocity of the electron moving in an elliptical orbit varies at different parts of the orbit. This causes the relativistic variation in the mass of the moving electron.