Arrhenius & Collision Theory — Activation Energy
Raise the temperature and watch the Boltzmann tail past the activation energy fatten.
About this simulation
The Maxwell–Boltzmann energy distribution with the activation-energy threshold marked, and the reactive tail (E ≥ Ea) shaded. Students raise the temperature and see the distribution shift and broaden so far more molecules clear the barrier, or switch on a catalyst that lowers Ea to the same effect without heating. The reacting fraction, Ea/RT and the rate relative to a 300 K baseline update live, driving home why rate depends on the exponential tail (k = A·e^(−Ea/RT)) rather than the peak. The energy axis is deliberately schematic — as in every textbook Ea diagram — because a real Ea/RT ≈ 20 would hide the tail; every readout is computed self-consistently from the drawn distribution.
