Zeeman Effect

Zeeman effect, pronounced ZAY mahn, is the splitting of a spectral line when a source of light is placed in a magnetic field. Spectral lines of light are produced when the electrons in atoms change from one energy level to another (see Light). The pattern of spectral lines thus indicates the energy levels of the atoms. Because the lines split into parts when the atoms are in a magnetic field, the Zeeman effect indicates that the energy levels of the atoms have changed.

The Zeeman effect was first observed in 1896 by Pieter Zeeman, a Dutch physicist. Scientists were unable to understand its complexity until the development of quantum mechanics in the 1920's. Physicists can learn about such things as the magnetic properties of atoms and the electrons in them by observing the split spectral lines. The Zeeman effect can also be used to study molecules and nuclei.

Contributor: Gerald Feinberg, Ph.D., Former Prof. of Physics, Columbia Univ.

Zeeman Effect

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