SECOND YEAR LABORATORY

ZEEMAN EFFECT

The Zeeman (Magnetic-Field) Effect on Electron Levels of Neon Atoms

Summary of the Experiment
It is well known from Bohr Theory that an atom can be characterized by a unique set of discrete energy states. When excited, through heating or electron bombardment in a discharge tube, the atom makes transitions between these quantized energy states and emits light. The emitted light forms a discrete spectrum, reflecting the quantized nature of the energy states or energy levels. In the presence of a magnetic field, these energy levels can shift. This effect is known as the Zeeman Effect. The origin of Zeeman Effect is the following: in an atomic energy state, an electron orbits around the nucleus of the atom and has a magnetic dipole moment associated with its angular momentum. In a magnetic field, it acquires an additional energy just as a bar magnet does and consequently the original energy level is shifted. The energy shift may be positive, zero, or even negative, depending on the angle between the electron magnetic dipole moment and the field. Due to Zeeman Effect, some degenerate energy levels will split into several nondegenerate energy levels with different energies. This allows for new transitions which can be observed as new spectral lines in the atomic spectrum. Precise measurement of the optical emission-line spectra of atoms is of great importance in allowing determination of many of the energy levels of the atomic electrons. Its application here enables the angular momentum properties of the electron states of atoms to be investigated and understood. In the experiment you will make measurements on the visible-light spectrum from neon gas in an electrical-discharge tube, first in zero magnetic field and then in a field up to about 1 tesla. The neon emission spectrum appears reddish to the naked eye, but in fact contains yellow, orange and light green lines in addition to the lines in the red part of the spectrum. The lines themselves are separated in this experiment by a reflection grating. Measurements of the small Zeeman-effect changes in wavelength of each line are made by observing the displacements of parts of the circular interference fringes produced by a parallel-plate multi-reflection interferometer (FabryPerot etalon).

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Energy levels in increasing field

Fig 1: Energy level diagram as a function of the magnetic field In general, atoms have a composite angular momentum J such that J = L + S. This comes from both the total orbital angular momentum L which is contributed by the individual angular momenta l of the electrons, and also the total electron spin angular momentum S from the individual electron spin angular momenta s. The L and S vectors precess around their resultant J. There is also an associated magnetic moment J, the only exceptions being the cases where the angular momentum quantum number J = 0. The dimensionless gJ factor for the state is defined as the ratio of magnetic moment J to angular momentum J in units of viz

gJ =
where

J B
J

e is the Bohr magneton. = 9.274 x 10 24 Joules Tesla-1 2m Let us consider transitions between the upper state J = 1 and the lower state J = 0 in a magnetic field (see Fig. 1.). The state J = 0 can have only MJ = 0 and the state J = 1 has MJ = {-1, 0, 1}. In an external B field the states with MJ = -1 or MJ = +1 are shifted in energy as depicted in Fig. 1. Conservation laws determine which transitions can occur ("allowed") and which can't ("forbidden"). The allowed transitions are specified by a set of conditions called selection rules. The selection rules are given below without derivation. l = 1 L = 0, 1 S = 0 J = 0, 1 MJ = 0, 1 B =

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NOTE: MJ = 1 transitions are called transitions, while MJ = 0 transitions are called transitions. In the example depicted in Fig. 1 all three transitions obey these selection rules; in particular the MJ = 0 or 1 rule is obeyed. At zero magnetic field, all three transitions will have the same frequency, say v. At finite magnetic field the transition frequencies become dependent on the MJ quantum number of the initial state due to the Zeeman splitting. The three transition frequencies are v v, v, and v + v where the frequency splitting (see formulas in Figure 1) (B in units of tesla) B = 14.00 g j B GHz h is linear in the magnitude of the applied B field. In a spectrometer of high resolution the three transitions would thus have the appearance of equally spaced triplet lines. Such a triplet is often called a normal Zeeman triplet. It is obtained in a similar way if the upper state has J = 0 and the lower state has J = 1. Verify that you would also obtain a normal Zeeman triplet when both Js are greater than zero, provided that the value of gJ is the same for both states. In this last case, when the two gJs are not equal, a more complex pattern results, often with more than three lines. This is referred to as the anomalous Zeeman Effect. In the present experiment when the two gJs are similar but not equal, all the lines are not resolved and the pattern looks like a Zeeman triplet but is really an anomalous Zeeman Effect.

v = g j

The anomalous Zeeman Effect was very puzzling to early researchers and their explanation gave additional insight into the effects of electron spin. With the inclusion of electron spin in the total angular momentum, the other types of multiplets formed part of a consistent picture. So what has been historically called the "anomalous" Zeeman Effect is really the normal Zeeman Effect when electron spin is included.

Polarization
In this experiment, the discharge tube is viewed in a direction perpendicular to the magnetic field. It follows from atomic physics and electromagnetism that light from the M = 1 is plane polarised with the electric field vector E at right angles to the magnetic field and light from the M = 0 transitions are plane polarised with the E parallel to the magnetic field. Therefore, once you have obtained the splitting of the Fabry-Perot fringes in a magnetic field, you will be able to distinguish between the 2 types of transition by using a plane polarising filter.

The Emission Spectrum of Neon

In this experiment, as previously stated, Zeeman-effect observations are made on appropriate optical emission lines from excited neon atoms, the emission lines themselves being selected by use of a diffraction-grating spectrometer. Figure 2 gives a diagrammatic representation of the optical emission spectrum of neon that shows the wavenumbers (in units of the number of wavelengths per cm, these of course being proportional to the photon energies), and also the corresponding electronic transitions, for the spectral lines for which the Normal Zeeman Effect (marked by N) should be observed. The heights of the vertical bars on the spectral diagram are proportional to the observed intensities of the emission lines. Some lines in the diagram have the associated transition indicated by n n,
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where n and n are the excited-state numbers, 1 to 14, as specified in Table 2. For example the line indicated with 10 4 comes from spontaneous decay of the 2p53p state to the 2p53s state. The following should also be noted: Strong transitions must obey the selection rules l = 1, J = 0 or 1. The latter may be regarded as a consequence of the angular momentum quantum number of the photon being 1 in this case and conservation of angular momentum in the process of emission. For statistical reasons there will be more transitions between lower states than between higher states, i.e. 3p 3s will, in general, be stronger than 4p 4s. The colour of the lines is a guide to and -1 for the transitions: Table 1: Red Orange Yellow Green Blue cm-1 13000 15000 16800 18300 20000 cm-1 15500 16800 18300 20000 23000

to to to to to

One or two of the lines, which you can see, consist of two lines so close together that they cannot be resolved

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Principal Lines of the Neon Spectrum The n n signifies the transition between the states n and n specified in Table 2. The symbol N indicates lines that show the Normal Zeeman Effect

SECOND YEAR LABORATORY ZEEMAN EFFECT

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Fig 2:

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ZEEMAN EFFECT

Schematic Experimental Arrangement

Fig 3:

Table 2: Excited State Number

Configuration 2p6 (ground state) 1 2p5(2P3/2)3s 2 2p5(2P3/2)3s 3 2p5(2P1/2)3s 4 2p5(2P1/2)3s

J 0 2 1 0 1 1 3 2 1 2 0 1 2 1 0

Energy/cm-1 0 134 043.790 134 461.237 134 820.591 135 890.670 148 259.746 149 659.000 149 826.181 150 123.551 150 317.821 150 919.391 150 774.072 150 860.468 151 040.413 152 972.697

Obs. g 1.503 1.464 1.034 1.984 1.329 1.137 .669 1.229 0.999 1.301 1.340 -

5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P3/2)3p 2p5(2P1/2)3p 2p5(2P1/2)3p 2p5(2P1/2)3p 2p5(2P1/2)3p

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Observation of the Zeeman Effect and Measurement of gJ Apparatus

Fig. 3 shows a schematic view of the spectrometer arrangement. The apparatus should be set up such that observation of the Zeeman splitting is readily obtained. If this is indeed the case, it is in your interest to leave the settings alone. In particular, do not touch the etalon separation screws; their adjustment is critical. The neon in the glass tube is excited by an electrical discharge. This involves the use of dangerously high voltages, so be careful what you touch. An electromagnet is placed around the tube so that magnetic fields may be imposed on the neon atoms. A Variac is used to adjust the amount of current going through the electromagnet's coils; the current can be read off an ammeter. Light from the discharge tube is collected by a lens and passed through a Fabry-Perot etalon. A second lens focuses the ring patterns of the various spectral lines onto the vertical slit of a spectrometer. The slit allows segments of the ring patterns to pass. These segments fall on the blazed reflection grating, which provides horizontal resolution, separating out the segments belonging to different spectral lines. Thus, when you look through the telescope, you should see vertical patterns of segments for the various spectral lines spaced out horizontally from one another. The splitting of a particular spectral line, when the magnetic field is switched on, can then be observed via the splitting of the segments in the vertical pattern of segments belonging to that line.

The lines, which you see when using the spectrometer, are images of the collimator (spectrometer entrance) slit. The Fabry-Perot rings should be focused onto the collimator slit with the centre of the rings in line with the slit. Each line in the field of view should show short, bright arcs, which are small sections of rings. The grating dispersion is in a horizontal direction and will separate in this direction the Fabry-Perot arcs of rings with an appreciably different wavelength. In this experiment the Etalon (Fabry-Perot) is used to resolve the Zeeman splitting, while the grating is used to differentiate between different spectral lines. The horizontal displacement of spectral features viewed by the observer is due to the grating. The vertical displacement results from the Fabry-Perot spectrometer. However, the horizontal shifts due to the wavelength changes in the Zeeman Effect are much too small to be seen. The Zeeman Effect can be seen as a vertical displacement of the short horizontal arcs of the Fabry-Perot fringes. Check that increasing the current through the electromagnet produces the expected shifts. Check that insertion of a piece of polarizer cuts out some of the lines depending on its orientation. The etalons have a spacing of d = 5.00 0.03 mm.

Experimental procedure
Record the date and the title of the experiment in your laboratory notebook and start your report with a reference to these notes for the main experimental description. Turn the electromagnet current down to 0 amps, and observe the pattern of lines visible when you look through the telescope. Your eye will need to be dark- adapted if the pattern is to be clearly visible. A number of red, orange and yellow spectral lines will be visible, separated out in the
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horizontal direction. Each line consists of a number of short, nearly vertical, strips, corresponding to the segments of the etalon ring pattern intercepted by the slit. Slowly turn up the electromagnet current. Each ring pattern should split up into a number of component ring patterns. Some of the spectral lines will produce complex patterns, but one of the yellow lines will produce a normal Zeeman triplet, i.e. the line will split into just three equally separated components. That line must be due to a transition between levels with J = 0 and J = 1. It is a good idea to make, in your laboratory notebook, a sketch of the pattern of spectral lines showing their colours, relative spacings and brightness. This will help in the later identification of particular lines for the purpose of measuring their wavelengths. Adjust the electromagnet current until the etalon pattern of the normal Zeeman triplet is a series of equally spaced rings (B = B3, see fig 4). The electromagnet may have some hysteresis, so always approach the current setting from below. The separation between the components of the triplet is now one-third of the free spectral range of the etalon. For a Fabry-Perot etalon, the free c spectral range is given by f FSR = where d is the etalon spacing. Record the electromagnet 2d current in your laboratory notebook in a table with columns for splitting as a fraction of free spectral range and electromagnet current. Allow space for a third column to be added later when the magnetic field corresponding to a given current has been determined. Now increase the current further until another set of equally spaced rings is obtained (B = B2, see fig 4). The separation is now one-half of the free spectral range. Record this new result in your table. Place the linear analyser provided between the etalon and the spectrometer slit. Rotate the analyser and note that the unshifted elements of the ring pattern can be extinguished by rotating this analyser. With the analyser in place and providing this extinction, turn the current down until a final set of equally spaced rings is observed (B = B4, see fig 4). (For reasons that will be explained below you should overshoot in reducing the current and finally approach the required setting by increasing the current.) The separation is now one-quarter of the free spectral range. Record the current that gives rise to this condition. Calibration equations for the field (in tesla) in terms of current (A) are provided for the electromagnets used in each Zeeman apparatus set. Make a third column in your table for magnetic field and enter the magnetic fields corresponding to the electromagnet currents that were recorded earlier. Repeat this for as many Zeeman triplets as you can find.

Processing the data

Using your tabulated data draw a graph of frequency shift in hertz against magnetic field in teslas. The data should lie close to a straight line passing through the origin. Using a computer fit, or otherwise, estimate the gradient of this line and its uncertainty and, hence, find a value for gj with an associated uncertainty. You may take it that the fractional uncertainty in gj is the same as the fractional uncertainty in the gradient. You should be able to determine gj values for at least two or three transitions, but if possible all the transitions.
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There are many energy levels of neon that have J = 1. Your value is of no real use unless you can identify which energy level it belongs to. So your next task is to match your observations with the data presented in figure 2.

fFSR

f2

f3

f4

Fig 4: For B = B2, the normal Zeeman triplet is split such that the upper line for order (n + 1), say, coincides with the lower line from (n + 2), and the (B induced) change in f is given by: 1 1 c f 2 = f FSR = 2 2 2d For B = B3 in the diagram, we have f3 = 1/3 fFSR. In the right hand diagram, a polarizer has been used to eliminate the central line and here, f4 = 1/4 fFSR.

Appendix:
The Fabry-Perot etalon The frequency of the red photon is 5 x 1014 Hz. The difference in frequency of the three components when the magnetic field is imposed is only about 1010 Hz. The change is about one part in fifty thousand, too small to be easily observed with a grating or prism spectrometer. Another device, the Fabry-Perot etalon, can be used to obtain this sort of resolution. An etalon is just two parallel highly reflecting surfaces which are held a fixed distance d apart. Light that enters the gap between the two surfaces will suffer multiple reflections, as shown in Figure 5. If the path difference (d) between two adjacent beams that emerge is a whole number of wavelengths, constructive interference can occur. When it does, nearly all of the light will be transmitted through the plates. The condition for this to happen is n = 2d cos where n is an integer known as the order of interference, is the wavelength of the light, and is the angle that the light path makes with the normal.
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Of course, interference can only occur if a lens is used to collect all of the light that emerges at the angle and focus it to a point. If a screen is placed at that focus, a ring pattern will be seen if the light has only one wavelength. Each ring corresponds to an angle , which is a solution of the above equation for a particular value of n. The value of n, the order number, labels the ring. (Note that n decreases as increases.)

Figure 5: The operating principle of the Fabry-Perot etalon.

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Fig 6: The experimental layout of the Fabry-Perot etalon.

Free spectral range

An etalon can be used to separate out two frequencies of light that are very close to each other. Each frequency will generate its own ring pattern, which is displaced from the ring pattern due to the other frequency. This section shows you how the angular displacement of the two ring patterns can be used to find the difference between the two frequencies. Consider a constructive interference of order n, at angle , for light of wavelength . n = 2d cos so that n nc cos = = 2d 2 fd Consider an angle that corresponds to constructive interference. What change in frequency f corresponds to a change in n of 1 for constructive interference at the same ? The interference remains constructive at a given angle when the frequency, f, and order, n, are changed if the change in cos is zero. Using the rule for the total derivative of a function of two variables, this condition is nc nc nc f c ( cos ) = f + n = 2 + n = 0 f 2 fd n 2 fd 2d f 2 fd
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from which

f =
Thus, for a given , increasing the frequency by

f n n
c = 2d cos

f =

f c 1 c = = n n 2d cos

has the effect of increasing the order of interference by 1. In the experiments, is very small and so we have f = c/2d. The particular change in frequency, fFSR = c/2d, is called the free spectral range (FSR) of the etalon. The original ring pattern thus provides a calibration of ring diameters in terms of frequency, with the spacing between adjacent orders corresponding to frequencies differing by fFSR for a given order. For example, two neon Zeeman components might give the ring pattern indicated in Figure 7. The distance X separating subsequent rings of the same frequency (i.e. n = 1) corresponds to a frequency separation equal to the free spectral range fFSR. The distance x is between rings of same order but originating from different frequency components. The difference between the frequency components is then seen to be f = (x/X) fFSR.

Order n +1 Order n

Fig 7: Ring pattern of order n and n + 1 of two closely spaced frequencies.

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