In the simplest theory, we will imagine an electron which may be
displaced from its position of equilibrium in all directions, and is,
in this displacement, submitted to attractions which communicate to it
a vibration like a pendulum. These movements are equivalent to tiny
currents, and the mobile electron, when animated with a considerable
velocity, must be sensitive to the action of the magnet which modifies
the form of the trajectory and the value of the period. This almost
direct consequence was perceived by Lorentz, and it led him to the new
idea that radiations emitted by a body ought to be modified by the
action of a strong electromagnet.
An experiment enabled this prevision to be verified. It was made, as
is well known, as early as 1896 by Zeeman; and the discovery produced
a legitimate sensation. When a flame is subjected to the action of a
magnetic field, a brilliant line is decomposed in conditions more or
less complex which an attentive study, however, allows us to define.
According to whether the observation is made in a plane normal to the
magnetic field or in the same direction, the line transforms itself
into a triplet or doublet, and the new lines are polarized
rectilinearly or circularly.
Pages:
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392