Schrödinger's Atom   Until you check where it is, it's really just a wave. Not only that, but Schrödinger showed that these electrons don't even move. The waves are stationary. Each time you check where an electron is you will find it in a different place, but that doesn't mean it's moving in between checks. For some energy levels, if you check position enough times you may see an "orbit-like" pattern, but don't be fooled into thinking that electrons are actually moving around in little circles. We call this the Energy Level of the electron. Because the idea of orbits is so misleading, physicists started using a picture of the atom which just showed energy levels as relative heights. And we call this the "Schrödinger Model," of course. So in this applet, the picture to the left of the Bohr Model shows the energy level of the electron, and the picture to the right shows the areas around the nucleus where the electron will probably be found. You can interact with the Bohr hydrogen atom in this applet just like the last one, except now you will see the changes in the Schrödinger model as well. Click on an orbit to change energy levels. The electron will eventually decay down to its ground state on its own.