Today (October 9, 1943) is the anniversary of Pieter Zeeman, winner of the Nobel Prize for his effect on magnetic fields in light sources.

Today (October 9, 1943) is the anniversary of Pieter Zeeman, winner of the Nobel Prize for his effect on magnetic fields in light sources.

Pieter Zeeman was born on May 25, 1865, in the small town of Sonnemeyer, Netherlands. The Father is the Rev. Catherineus Forantinus, Mother, Willemina Whores, minister of the Dutch Reformed Church. Peter became interested in physics at an early age. In 1883, Aurora borealis was visible in the Netherlands. Zeeman, a student at the high school in Jericho, created a map and description of the event and submitted it to Nature. There it was released. The author praised "Professor Zeeman from his laboratory at Sonemeyer." After graduating high school in 1883, Zeeman moved to Delft to pursue auxiliary education in classical languages. Then join the university. He is the author of Dr. J.W. Co-principal of the gymnasium and responsible for the perception and realization of Judersey's work is Cornelis Lili's brother Lily. While at Delft, he first met Hike Comerling Ones, who was about to become his thesis advisor.

                                     

After Jiemann passed the qualifying exam in 1885, he studied physics at the University of Leiden under the Commer- cines Ones and Hendrick Lorentz. In 1890, before completing his thesis, he became Lorentz's assistant. This allowed him to participate in a research project on the Kerr effect. In 1893 he submitted his doctoral thesis on the Kerr effect of the reflection of polarized light on the magnetized surface. After graduating with a doctorate, he moved to Friedrich Kolrachsin in Strasbourg for half a year. In 1895, upon returning from Strasbourg, Zeeman became a Private Docent in Mathematics and Physics at Leiden. In the same year he married Johanna Elizabeth Lepret. 

In 1896, just before moving from Leiden to Amsterdam, he measured the separation of spectral lines by a strong magnetic field. This is now called the Zeeman effect. For this he won the 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics. This research involves investigating the impact of magnetic fields on a light source. He discovered that in the presence of a magnetic field a spectral line divided into several components. Lorentz first heard about Zeeman's observations at the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in Amsterdam on Saturday, October 31, 1896. The results were reported by Kamerling Ones. The following Monday, Lorentz summoned Zeeman to his office and offered him a description of his observations based on Lorentz's electromagnetic radiation theory. 

The importance of Zeeman's invention soon became apparent. This confirmed Lorentz's prediction of the polarization of light emitted by the presence of a magnetic field. According to Lorentz, oscillating particles were negatively charged by light emission. And thanks to the work of Zeeman, it is a thousand times lighter than a hydrogen atom. The decision was made long before Thompson discovered the electron. The Zeeman effect thus became an important tool for elucidating the structure of the atom. Shortly after his discovery, Zeeman was offered a position as a lecturer in Amsterdam. There he began work in the fall of 1896. In 1900 he was promoted to Professor of Physics at the University of Amsterdam. 

In 1902, along with his former mentor Lorentz, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery of the Zeeman effect. Five years later, in 1908, after van der Waals, he became a full professor and director of the Institute of Physics in Amsterdam. In 1918 he published "Some experiments on gravity, the mass-weight ratio for crystals and radioactive materials" in the process of Koninklijke Nederlands Academy von Wettenshauppen. He empirically confirmed the equality principle with respect to the gravitational and inertial masses. 

A new laboratory, built in 1923 in Amsterdam, was renamed the Zeeman Laboratory in 1940. This new facility allowed Zeeman to pursue a refined investigation into the effect of Zeeman. For the rest of his career, he became interested in research in magnetic-optics. He also explored the spread of light in moving media. Due to special relativity this material became the center of renewed interest. Also enjoyed a great deal of interest from Lorentz and Einstein, and later in his career he became interested in mass spectrometry. 

In 1898 Zeeman was elected a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in Amsterdam. He also served as its secretary from 1912 to 1920. He was awarded the Henry Draper Medal in 1921 and many other awards and honorary titles. Zeeman was elected a foreign member of the Royal Society  in 1921. He retired as a professor in 1935. Peter Zeemann, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for his work on the effect of magnetic fields on light sources, left this world in Amsterdam on October 9, 1943, in his 78th year.

Source By: Wikipedia

Information: Ramesh, Assistant Professor of Physics, Nehru Memorial College, Puthanampatti, Trichy.