The Zeeman Effect

Asher Philip
Lab Partner: Jonathan Thompson
Professor: Dr. Gerald W. Hoffmann
Spring 2008
 Abstract

We were able to successfully visualize the Zeeman Effect on the 5461Ao spectral line of
Hg using a simple optical setup. We found that a central ring split into three: an inner,
outer, and central ring. We calculated the percent change in the diameter of these rings
and used this value to calculate the frequency shift v of the 5461A wavelength. We
found an average value of v=2.71e-21e-5 cm-1 and a value of 5.42e-52e-5 Gauss-
1
*cm-1 for /hc. The accepted value for /hc is 4.67e-5 Gauss-1*cm-1, which differed
0 0
from our calculations by 16%.

Introduction

When an atom absorbs a photon with sufficient energy, an electron in the atom

can be excited into a higher energy orbital. As the excited electron shifts back to the

lower energy state, the energy from the absorbed photon can be reemitted, leading to

atom-specific spectral lines. The Zeeman Effect occurs when spectral lines are split in the

presence of an external magnetic field. The magnetic field breaks the degeneracy of

orbitals with the same electronic configuration and hence changes the frequency of

photons emitted during atomic transitions. Using perturbation theory, we find that the

energy of a state with quantum numbers n, l, j mj in a magnetic field is given by E nljmj =

En + gBmj, where g is the Lande g factor, is the Bohr magneton, and En is the

hydrogen orbital energy.

In our experiment, we observed splitting of the 5461A spectral line from mercury.

The green 5461A line comes from an electronic transition between the 73S1 and 63P2

states, as shown in Figure 1. This line splits into six states with m=1 and three with

m=0, as is clearly seen in the figure.

 Figure 1 Zeeman Transition for the 5461A Hg line3

We placed a mercury lamp inside a variable magnetic field and observed changes in its

spectra. Light from the lamp passed through an optical array of lens and filters before

coming to a focus on a telescope. We placed a web camera at the telescopes eyepiece

and recorded the spectra on a laptop computer.

Experimental Procedure

An overview of our experimental setup is shown in Figure 2, and a schematic of the setup

is given in Figure 3.
 Figure 2 Experiment Overview

Figure 3 Experiment Schematic

The following equipment was used in our experiment: 1. Fabry-Perot Interferometer, 2.

Telescope, 3. Polarizer, 4. Converging Lenses, 5. 5461A Optical Filter, 6. Logitech

QuickPro 9000 Web Camera, 7. Electromagnet w/ power supply, 8. Mercury lamp with

external power supply, 9. Dell laptop computer, 10. Laboratory Clamps.

Before collecting data, we calibrated the electromagnet (shown in Figure 3) using a gauss

meter. The calibration data is given in the next section.

 Figure 4 Electromagnet with Cardboard Iris

We mounted the mercury lamp between the poles of the electromagnet and varied the

magnetic field using the DC current supply. We measured the magnetic field between the

two poles using a gauss meter, but found that the values varied significantly when we

moved the gauss meter from the center of the electromagnet. We used a cardboard slit

(iris) to allow only light emitted from the portion of the mercury lamp exposed to the

uniform magnetic field at the center to reach the rest of the optical setup. To further limit

external light from entering the setup, we placed a cardboard box with a hole in the center

in front of the electromagnet. We then focused the light using a lens with a focal length of

~7cm onto a 5461A filter, which was situated as shown in Figure 1. Light from the filter

was directed to another lens, which focused it on to a polarizer. We used the polarizer to

select only the three m=0 transitions corresponding to the 5461A Hg spectral line. From

the polarizer, the light reached a Fabry-Perot interferometer (or etalon), which consists of

a pair of closely spaced, partially-silvered mirrors attached to a lens. Incident light is

partially transmitted through the first mirror, and undergoes multiple internal reflections

as shown in Figure 5. Part of the light is transmitted through the second mirror at each

reflection, leading to multiple reflected rays that are out of phase by a constant increment.

When these interference fringes are focused by a lens, they form concentric circles,

which we viewed using a telescope.

Figure 5 Fabry-Perot Etalon1

We situated a Logitech Quickcam Pro 9000 web-camera near the eye piece of the

telescope and monitored the ring splitting using a laptop computer. We varied the current

to the electromagnet between 0 and 10 amps (0-15 kgauss) and recorded the splitting at 1

amp intervals.

We analyzed the data obtained using GNU Image Manipulation (GIMP) software,

version 2.4.5. The software allowed us to calculate the relative diameter of the rings we

collected. As the magnetic field is increased, the central ring in question splits into an

inner and outer ring. After downloading the GIMP software, we exported the image files

into the GIMP software program. Under the Tools tab, we selected Measure and
calculated the number of pixels from the center to the edge of the central, inner and outer

rings, as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6 Measuring Tool in GIMP

Experimental Data

The measured magnetic field as a function of current is given in the graph below.

As the chart reveals, the dependence of the magnetic field on the current is linear until the

current is increased to above 9 amps. We found the relationship between the current

supplied to the electromagnet and its magnetic field to be roughly B=1.55I+0.1. The

value for the magnetic field is not zero at zero current because the poles of the

electromagnet are slightly magnetized even with the current supply turned off. When
calculating the magnetic field, we made sure our gauss meter was perpendicular to the

magnetic field in order to obtain an accurate value for the field intensity.

Electromagnet Calibration
18
16 y = 1.5491x + 0.09
14 R2 = 0.9975

12
Magnetic Field 10
(kGauss) 8
6 Magnetic Field (kGauss)
4
2 Linear (Magnetic Field
(kGauss))
0
0 5 10 15
Current (Amps)

We collected spectra using a 5461A green filter, and later collected spectra with no filter.

The later spectra, which is shown in Figure 7, was used to try and observe the splitting of

the 4358A line, since using a filter made this line extremely dim. However, since we did

not use a filter, many different wavelengths of light were present and we could not extract

reasonable results from this data. Hence, we were only able to measure the splitting of the

5461A spectral line with reasonable accuracy.

0 Amps
 4 Amps
Figure 7 Ring Splitting with No Filter

Figure 8 shows splitting we observed when the 5461A filter was put in place. The top

picture is with no current applied to the electromagnet, and the bottom picture is taken

with a current of 5 amps.

0 Amps
 5 Amps
Figure 8 Ring Spectra with 5461A Filter

We collected images of ring splittings with a 5461A filter for currents from 0-10 amps in

1 amp increments, and repeated the procedure by collecting images with no filter in

place. We found we could not extract reasonable results from the images taken with no

filter because, they were while brighter, the regions where the lines split were not clear

since all wavelengths were presents. Hence, we only analyzed images taken using the

5461A filter. Furthermore, we did not see quantifiable ring splitting until the current was

increased to 4 amps, or roughly 6.4 kilogauss. We collected data for the relative diameter

of the rings in a 4-10 amp range, or in a magnetic field range of 6.4 to 15.4 kilogauss.

Data Analysis
As mentioned in the introduction, the energy due to the external magnetic field is given

by E=*g*B*mj. If we compare the difference between two energy levels, we find that

E= * B (gf*mjf gi*mji). For the transition that leads to the 5461A spectral line, g=1/2

as shown in Figure 1. We used a polarizer to filter out the mj=1, -1 transitions, leaving

only the mj=0 lines. Since E= c*h/, we find that the frequency shift v=1/f 1/i is

proportional to (1/2)( /hc)B, or by rearranging the terms,

0
 /hc = 2(<v>/B).
0

Hence, if we create a graph of frequency shift vs. magnetic field, we should find that the

absolute value of the two slopes added together should equal /(h*c), or roughly 4.67e-5
0

cm-1Gauss-1. We assumed that the percent change in the radius of the rings was

proportional to the percent change in the wavelength of the light. Hence, we calculated

the percent change in the radii of the rings we collected as the magnetic field was

increased, and our values are shown in the table below.

Outer Ring (%
Initial Inner Ring (%
Gauss Distance) Initial Distance)
6440 107.54 93.56
8190 110.41 89.96
9750 111.43 90.37
11320 112.86 84.24
12650 111.22 88.33
13960 115.44 86.69
15050 115.64 83.58

Using this percentage change and the initial wavelength of the transition, 5461A, we

calculated the relative frequency shift. If the initial wavelength =5461A changes to a

proportion x, we can calculate the relative frequency shift using the formula 1/x- 1. A

graph of the relative frequency shift as a function of magnetic field is given below.
 Zeeman Effect

0.25
y = 0.0308x
0.2
0.15 Inner

0.1 Outer
Relative Linear (Inner)
0.05
Frequency
0 Linear (Outer)
Shift (cm -1)
-0.05 6.44 8.19 9.75 11.32 12.65 13.96 15.05
-0.1
-0.15
y = -0.0234x
-0.2
Magnetic Field (kGauss)

By calculating the average of the two slopes, we found an average value for v, <v>=

=2.71e-21e-5 cm-1, which directly leads us to a value of 5.42e-52e-5 Gauss-1*cm-1 for

/(h*c). We estimated the error in our experiments by looking at the size of the central
0

ring, which in theory should remain constant as the magnetic field is increased. In our

calculations, the central ring fluctuated between a size of 242 and 248 pixels, as shown in

the table below. The average value for the central ring size was 244.6 pixels, and the

standard deviation was 2.4 pixels, which gave as an initial percent error of 1% in our

measurements.

Magnetic Central
Field Ring
(kGauss) (pixels)
0.09 242
1.57 246
3.11 242
4.83 248
6.44 246
8.19 246
9.75 244
11.32 242
12.65 242
 13.96 248
15.05 244.1

Furthermore, we calculated the relative percentage change in the ring diameter as a

function of external magnetic field, as shown in the figure below. Using a linear least-

square fit, we found that the v here was 2.66e-5 1e-5, and the value for 0 /hc we

found was 5.42e-5 2e-5. The error interval comes from estimating the average

difference between the linear fit and the values at the end points.

Zeeman Effect
130
125
120 y = 2.6594x + 100
115
Relative Outer Ring
110
Percentage
105 Inner Ring
100
Linear (Inner Ring)
95
y = -2.6544x + 100
90 Linear (Outer
Ring)
85
80
6.44 8.19 9.75 11.32 12.65 13.96 15.05
Magnetic Field (Gauss)
Conclusions
Using an original optical setup, we were able to view bright rings and clear

splitting of the 5461A Hg spectral line. We analyzed these figures with the software

program GIMP to quantify the percentage change of the diameter of the rings and use

these values to calculate the relative frequency shift. Because the polarizer allowed us to

view only the m=0 states, we saw one central ring split into three: an inner, central, and

outer ring. We compared the percent changes of the ring diameter as a function of the

magnetic field as well as the relative frequency shift as a function of magnetic field, and

we found a value of 5.42e-5 2e-5 cm-1*Gauss-1 for the quantity o/hc.

Our value for o/hc had a high percent error (16%) most likely because we

calculated the ring splittings over a large magnetic field range. If we were to repeat the

experiment, we would take images over a smaller magnetic field range (e.g. 6-12

kilogauss) and with smaller current intervals. However, the true value for the quantity

does fall within our error range. Finally, if we were to repeat our analysis of this data, we

would find a program that allows us to pinpoint the center of the concentric rings. In our

case, we were eyeballing the middle pixel in our images and measuring the radii of the

rings relative to this point. Using a computer program to calculate the center of the rings

would likely lead to more accurate results.

References

1. Fabry-Perot Interferometer.
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/Hbase/phyopt/fabry.html

2. Lab Reports by Clayton OHair and Benjamin Topper. Spring 2007.

3. Melissinos, Experiments in Modern Physics, Academic Press.