AbstractsPhysics

One of the first triumphs of the quantum theory was the prediction of the effect that an electric field has on the emission of spectral lines. It was in 1913 that Stark first demonstrated this phenomenon. The historical development of knowledge of the Stark effect is now as well known as that of the Zeeman effect. Since 1913, the original canal-ray type of tube used by Stark and the earlier workers has been superceded by various modifications of the LoSurdo source. One modification of this source was used in this work and is described in detail under the heading "DISCHARGE TUBE". The experimental technique developed here [...] has greatly contributed to the theory of the Stark effect. [...] The present work was undertaken as a means of comparing the Stark effect in cobalt with that in iron [...]. It was also undertaken with the object of increasing, if possible, the existing information concerning the behaviour of the energy levels of the normal spectrum of cobalt. [...]