This idea is a central postulate of the Bohr Model (or Rutherford–Bohr model) of the atom, which was proposed in 1913.
Key Distinction from Rutherford's Model
Rutherford's Model suggested electrons orbit the nucleus like planets around the sun, but it didn't specify fixed paths or energy levels, which made the atom theoretically unstable according to classical physics (electrons should spiral into the nucleus).
Bohr's Model modified this by introducing the concept of quantized orbits (also called stationary states or energy shells), meaning electrons can only exist in certain orbits, each with a fixed, definite energy. This solved the problem of atomic stability and helped explain atomic spectra.