[manonemission]

Hello all, this is my first post on this forum so hello   My question is the following:

If you have two elements that share no common spectral lines, does one act as an insulator for the other?  E.g. if you would surround atoms of one of the elements with atoms of the other and then heated the system to a temperature at which the inner substance would begin emitting, would the outer substance insulate the emissions or would they somehow dissipate?  I.e. would they be reabsorbed by the inner substance and dissipated as conductive heat through the outer substance?

A more general question I have is whether there is a good website or article that deals with the relationship between spectrum lines and chemical behavior.  I am interested in whether the spectra of different elements have something to do with how they combine or avoid combining with other elements.

[Arkcon]

Yes, but then again, no, the other elements may absorb the emitted light, but their own spectra will have tell tale missing spectral lines caused by the emitted light robing them of some of their light.  A little hard to explain.  But, if you look at the spectra of stars, for example, we can see the elements they contain by black lines in their continuous spectrum -- which coincide with the elements they contain.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraunhofer_line

[fledarmus]

In response to your more general question - what does the frequency of emission tell you about the atom? How does that relate to the chemical properties of the atom?