The lines appeared on a perfectly dark ground.
The tube shows in the narrow part the hydrogen-spectrum of the first order; the lines in the green do not coincide with the lines of the nitrogen, though some lines belonging to nitrogen are found. Here, too, most probably small particles of aqueous vapour have been enclosed in the tube and are decomposed. Very striking is the spectrum in the broad part of the tube; nothing is to be seen of the bright shining lines Hα 3·98, Hβ 11·04, Hγ 15·90; on the other hand, four very bright lines and one quite faint one are in the red end of the spectrum, which appear, in opposition to the spectrum of the narrow part, not on a partially lighted, but on an entirely dark ground. The appearance is very striking if we bring the tube in front of the slit; and so, by degrees, at first the light in the narrow part, then the light at the connecting-point of the narrow and wide parts, and, finally, the light in the latter fall upon the slit. At the connecting-point of the wide ends of the tube the three well-known hydrogen-lines decrease in intensity, the continuous ground of some parts of the spectrum disappears, and a new line appears near 11·28, which has about the same brilliancy as Hβ.
A comparison with the spectrum of oxygen shows the bright lines which are in the spectrum in the wide end of the tube as belonging to that element. The heat evolved by the current appears insufficient to bring the hydrogen to glow, whilst by it the oxygen, which is of a more rarefied character, becomes incandescent. An alteration of the direction of the current has no influence on the appearance.
III. Nitrogen.
a. In the narrow part of the tube.
| Screw. | Wave-length. | Remarks. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3·84 | 6620 | Several faint, broad, close lines, increasing in brilliancy as they approach the violet end. | |
| 4·85 | 6213 | ||
| 5·30 | 6063 | Broad bright lines, so close together that the intervening spaces appear like fine dark lines. This part of the spectrum is very bright, but not uniform, being brighter towards the violet end. | |
| 5·51 | 6000 | ||
| 5·69 | 5948 | ||
| 5·87 | 5896 | ||
| 6·04 | 5846 | ||
| 6·20 | 5802 | ||
| 6·43 | 5741 | ||
| 6·96 | 5607 | Group of faint but at the same time very broad lines. The last is the brightest. | |
| 7·13 | 5567 | ||
| 7·28 | 5532 | ||
| 7·55 | 5470 | The dark intervening spaces are somewhat broader, the bright lines somewhat more intense than in the preceding group, and all of almost equal brilliancy. | |
| 7·74 | 5428 | ||
| 7·92 | 5389 | ||
| 8·09 | 5353 | ||
| 8·32 | 5306 | Very faint fine lines. | |
| 8·50 | 5272 | ||
| 8·69 | 5237 | ||
| 9·01 | 5178 | Very bright broad misty line. | |
| 9·67 | 5066 | Very bright line. | The bright lines are sharply defined towards the red end of the spectrum, fading away towards the other end of the spectrum. |
| 10·25 | 4975 | ”” | |
| 10·66 | 4913 | ”” | |
| 11·03 | 4862 | Very faint line. | |
| 11·41 | 4811 | Bright line. | |
| 12·11 | 4721 | ”” | |
| 12·57 | 4666 | Faint line. | |
| 12·57 | 4644 | Bright, broad, misty line. | |
| 13·42 | 4570 | Very bright line. | |
| 14·24 | 4487 | ”” | |
| 15·02 | 4417 | Bright line. | |
| 15·66 | 4363 | Bright lines. | Bright lines sharply defined towards red end, indistinct towards other end of spectrum. |
| 15·72 | 4357 | ” | |
| 15·87 | 4345 | Bright line. | |
| 16·72 | 4273 | ” | |
Here follow several lines.
b. In the wide part of the tube.
| Screw. | Wave-length. | Remarks. |
|---|---|---|
| 6·20 | 5802 | Faint, indistinct, broad line. |
| 7·72 | 5433 | Dull stripe. |
| 8·20 | 5330 | Faint line. |
| 8·94 | 5191 | Very faint line. |
| 9·03 | 5175 | Broad band of light. |
| 9·90 | 5029 | Dull band of light. |
| 10·68 | 4911 | Moderately bright line. |
| 11·42 | 4809 | Faint line. |
| 12·59 | 4663 | Bright line. |
| 13·43 | 4569 | ” |
| 14·07 | 4504 | Moderately bright line. |
| 14·25 | 4486 | Very bright line. |
| 15·85 | 4347 | ”” |
| 16·76 | 4273 | Moderately bright line. |