Zeeman Effect

Division of Physics & Applied Physics PH2198/PAP218 Physics Laboratory IIa

Zeeman Effect
Risk of Electrical Shock
Ensure all wiring are secure before turning on power supply

Hot Surfaces
Allow the light to cool before handling

1. Historical background
In 1862 Michael Faraday wanted to find out whether magnetic fields had an influence on the spectral lines emitted from sodium vapor in a Bunsen burner flame. He used the most powerful magnet and the best prism spectroscope available at that time, but failed to see anything. Three decades later Pieter Zeeman in Leiden (Netherlands) attempted to do the same experiment. He was able to use stronger magnets, and instead of prisms (which rely on dispersion for separating the wavelength) he used gratings fabricated by Rowland at Johns Hopkins University (USA). In 1896 Zeeman discovered that a strong magnetic field is able to split the lines of sodium into two or more lines, which he could detect using the Rowland grating. Zeeman proposed an explanation of his discovery based on Hendrik Antoon Lorentz idea that in all bodies small electrically charged particles of definite mass are present. We consider, as shown in the figure, an electrically charged particle of charge e and mass m circling around a nucleus in an orbit of radius R with a velocity v.

Zeeman Effect

Fig 1. An orbiting electron

The magnitude of the centripetal force on such an electron is given by

mv 2 FS = = m 2 R R
L

(1)

Where =v/R is the angular velocity. If a magnetic field acts along the z-axis, the corresponding Lorentz force on the electron is given by F =-evB and is pointing radially outwards (remember
2

the right-hand rule). Thus, in the simplest approximation the new force on electron is F=m R evB, where the sign takes into account that the electron may orbit in the opposite direction as well. Since we require that the radius of the orbit is almost constant and that Eq. (1) is still valid, we are led to conclude that the frequency must change a small amount , such that

m( + ) 2 R = m 2 R evB

(2)
2

We assume that this frequency change is very small, such that second order terms ( ) can be neglected. Then it is easy to see from Eq. (2) that

eB 2m

(3)

In this way Zeeman could explain that the magnetic field splits the spectroscopic line into three components by an amount linearly proportional to the applied magnetic field. Zeeman and Lorentz won the Nobel prize of Physics in 1902 for their studies of these systems. Today the Zeeman effect is used to determine the spectral properties of gases and solid with high accuracies. It is also used in laser cooled condensates to control the magnetic moments of the atoms. Thus, the Zeeman effect is still important, and it is therefore of importance to all physicists to have a basic understanding of this effect. 2

Zeeman Effect

2. Quantum theory of Zeeman effect

It is clear that the simple explanation provided by Zeeman and Lorentz (Eqs. 1-3) is only an order of magnitude calculation which relies on classical physics. It can therefore not give an entirely correct picture of the situation. Instead, we must resort to quantum theory to understand the underlying physical mechanisms. In modern quantum terminology we say that the Zeeman effect is the breaking of the degeneracy in atomic levels due to the interaction between the magnetic moment of the atoms and an external magnetic field. An external magnetic field will interact with the magnetic dipole moment of an atom which results is

U ( ) = B

(4)

The magnetic dipole moment associated with the orbital angular momentum is given by

orbital =
0

e L 2m e

(5)

For magnetic field in the z-direction, B=B z this gives

U=

eh e L z B = ml B 2me 2me

(6)

Considering the quantization of angular momentum, this gives equally spaced energy levels displaced from the zero field level by

E = m l
-24

eh B = ml B B 2me

(7)

where = 9.2740154x10
B

J/T is the Bohr magneton. This displacement of the energy levels

gives the uniformly spaced multiplet splitting of the spectral lines which is called the Zeeman effect.

Zeeman Effect

Fig 2. Splitting of the spectral lines due to Zeeman effect

The magnetic field also interacts with the electron spin magnetic moment, so it contributes to the Zeeman effect in many cases. The electron spin had not been discovered at the time of Zeeman's original experiments, so the cases where it contributed were considered to be anomalous. The term "anomalous Zeeman effect" has persisted for the cases where spin contributes. In general, both orbital and spin moments are involved, and the Zeeman interaction takes the form

E =

r e r ( L + 2S ) B = g L B m j B 2m e

(8)

The factor of two multiplying the electron spin angular momentum comes from the fact that it is twice as effective in producing magnetic moment. This factor is called the spin g-factor or gyromagnetic ratio. The evaluation of the scalar product between the angular momenta and the magnetic field here is complicated by the fact that the S and L vectors are both precessing around the magnetic field and are not in general in the same direction. The persistent early spectroscopists worked out a way to calculate the effect of the directions. The resulting geometric factor g in the final expression above is called the Lande g factor. It allowed them to
L

express the resultant splittings of the spectral lines in terms of the z-component of the total angular momentum, m .
j

The above treatment of the Zeeman effect describes the phenomenon when the magnetic fields are small enough that the orbital and spin angular momenta can be considered to be coupled. For extremely strong magnetic fields this coupling is broken and another approach must be taken. The strong field effect is called the Paschen-Back effect. 4

Zeeman Effect

3. Fabry-Perot Interferometer
The Fabry-Perot talon consists of two parallel flat glass plates coated on the inner surface with partially reflecting surface. An incoming ray at an angle with the horizontal will be split into many rays. The condition for constructive interference occur when

n = 2t cos
where is the reflective index and t is the thickness of the talon.

(9)

Fig 3. Constructive interference produced by an etalon

The emerging parallel rays are brought to focus using a convex lens into a series of bright rings. The radius of the rings are given by

rn = f tan n f n
According to equation (9),

(10)

n=

2t

cos n = no cos n

= no (1 2 sin 2

n
2

)
(11)

no (1
0

n2
2

Since n is not a generally not a whole number and n < n , we have n = n , where n is the
1 0 1 0 1

closest integer to n and 0 < < 1. Thus, the p-th ring of the pattern, measured from center out is
0

n = (n - ) - (p -1). Combining it with equations (10) and (11), the radius of the p ring can be
p 0

expressed as

Zeeman Effect

rp =

2f 2 ( p 1+ ) no

(12)

Hence the difference in the square of the radii of adjacent rings is a constant,

2 p +1

2f 2 r = no
2 p

(13)

When the spectral lines split, they will have fractional orders at the center and , subscript a
a b

and b denotes the two components of the split,

a =

2t

a 2t b = n1,b = 2tvb n1,b b

n1,a = 2tv a n1,a

(14)

The difference in wave numbers of the two components is

v =

a b
2t

(15)

Using equations (12) and (13), we get

rp2+1 rp2+1 rp2

(16)

Applying the above equation (16) to the components a and b and substitute them into (15) will yield the difference in wave number to be

rp2+1,a rp2+1,b 1 v = ( 2 ) 2t rp +1, a rp2,a rp2+1,b rp2,b

Verify for yourself that
+1, p +1, p p = p = rp2+1,a rp2,a a b

(17)

(18)

Zeeman Effect

4. Experiment
The setup of the apparatus is shown in Figure 4. The red filter is not inserted into the Fabry-Perot etalon during the initial setup. The coils of the electromagnet are connected in parallel and via an ammeter connected to the variable power supply of up to 20VDC, 12A. A capacitor of 22,000 F is then connected parallel to the power supply to smoothen the DC-voltage. (You may use a different lens for L2 to acquire a different magnification)

Fig 4. Arrangement of the optical components

Calibration of the magnetic field will be required. Remove the cadmium lamp. Insert the teslameter between the electromagnetic poles. Increase the current coil to 4A. Record the magnetic field between the electromagnetic poles. Increase the current and repeat until 10A. Plot the calibration graph of magnetic field against current. !!! !!! !!! DO NOT maintain large currents through the electromagnetic coils for extended periods of time. Reset the current to zero when not in use. !!! !!! !!! Get a life picture by opening the Motic Images Plus software followed by File Capture Window. Insert the red filter to pick out the 643.8 nm line of the cadmium spectrum. Fine-tune the positions of the optics components and the image settings until a satisfactory series of sharp rings are obtained in the life picture window. Increase the coil current to about 4A and observe the splitting of the rings. Capture the image using the Capture icon. Increase the current and repeat until 10A.

Zeeman Effect

5. Measurement and Evaluation

Once the pictures are collected, the radius of each ring can be measured by selecting clicking Measure Circle or Circle (3 Points). Obtain the best fit circle and the program will automatically calculate the radius of the circle. Repeat for as many of the rings as possible. The radii of the components a and b of the rings are used to calculate
, p 1 , p 1 p = p = rp2,a rp21,a a b

p = rp2,a rp2,b

(19)

The difference of the wave numbers can be calculated by the equation

v = 1 2t (20)

where t (= 3mm) is the spacing of the Fabry-Perot talon, and the mean values and are calculated in the following way

1 n np ,np 1 , np 1 = ( a + np ) b 2n p =1 1 2n p = 2n p =1

(21)

Since the central line split symmetrically, the change in energy of radiating electrons is given by

E = hc

v 2

(22)

and this change in energy E is proportional to the magnetic flux density B by a factor ,
B

E = B B
Determine the Bohr magneton, .
B

(23)

Zeeman Effect

6. Questions
1. Does the position of the analyzer affect the results of the experiment? 2. If the coils and light source are turned 90, how will the results change? Describe the changes if any.