Planck’s constant.
It has been attempted to show that, applying these assumptions to Rutherford’s theory of the structure of atoms, it seems possible to obtain an explanation of the laws of line-spectra discovered by Balmer, Rydberg, and Ritz.
It has further been attempted to show that it seems possible to account for some of the general features of the effect of magnetic and electric fields on spectral lines discovered by Zeeman and Stark. In the case of an electric field it is assumed that no alterations in the above assumptions take place. In the case of a magnetic field, however, it is found necessary to modify the third assumption in order to retain the connexion with ordinary electrodynamics in the region of slow vibrations.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Communicated by Sir E. Rutherford, F.R.S.
[2] Phil. Mag. vol. xxvi. pp. 1, 476, 857 (1913).
[3] Sitzungsb. d. Kgl. Akad. d. Wiss. Berlin, 1913, p. 932.
[4] While this paper was in course of preparation, a theoretical paper dealing with the same subject was published by E. Warburg (Verh. d. deutsch. Phys. Ges. xv. p. 1259 (1913)). The later finds that the effect of electric and magnetic fields to be expected on my theory of the hydrogen spectrum is of the same order of magnitude as determined by experiment. However, contrary to the conclusions of the present paper, Warburg concludes that it does not seem possible on the theory to account in detail for the experimental results. In his opinion the theory leads to a broadening of the hydrogen lines in an electric field, instead of the appearance of the homogeneous components observed by Stark. He also calculates that the Zeeman effect should vary from line to line in a manner inconsistent with experiment.
[5] In Planck’s original theory certain other assumptions about the properties of the vibrating systems were used. However, Debye (Ann. d. Phys. xxxiii. p. 1427 (1910)) has shown that it is possible to deduce Planck’s formula of radiation without using any assumption about the vibrators, if it be supposed that energy can be transferred between them and the radiation, only in finite quanta