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We're going over quantum basics in chemistry right now and I'm very confused.

Electrons can only accept in discreet quanta to move up an energy level, right? And they reflect other forms of light that don't supply energy in their specific quanta, right? And flame is just infrared electromagnetic radiation, right?

Then when heated by flame, why do the electrons move up to a next energy level? Shouldn't they need a certain wavelength to move up - one that isn't provided by the flame, given the emission for the atom is in the visible light range?

Qmechanic
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Pearson Frank
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There's not really any such thing as heating an individual atom. When you heat a gas like in a candle flame, the heat is the random motion of all the different atoms. The randomness is what makes us call it heat. If there's only one atom, there's no way to say if its motion is random or not.

And they reflect other forms of light that don't supply energy in their specific quanta, right?

Or they just transmit it (act transparent to it).

Then when heated by flame, why do the electrons move up to a next energy level? Shouldn't they need a certain wavelength to move up - one that isn't provided by the flame, given the emission for the atom is in the visible light range?

The atoms are being excited by collisions with other atoms. They're not being excited by absorbing light.