Temperature Dependence of Molecular Speed

Relationship with Temperature

The speed of gas molecules is directly related to temperature through the equation:

vrms∝Tv_{rms} \propto \sqrt{T}

This means that as temperature increases:

  • Molecular speeds increase
  • Collision frequency increases
  • Average kinetic energy increases

Maxwell-Boltzmann Distribution

The distribution of molecular speeds follows the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, which shows how temperature affects the range of molecular speeds in a gas.