193- 
I-path will split up into more paths than the 17'-path, and this 
again into more than the Z"-path. 
For the double series the same thing applies to the P-path and 
the P’-path. 
When only the j polarized components are considered, the same 
rules hold for them, in this ease “more” should however be replaced 
by “more or equal”. 
The number of components polarized // is for WH’ greater than 
I", and for P equal to P’. 
Another general conclusion can be drawn. When the electron 
jumps from & (and also from s and S) paths the components pola- 
rized 1 and // are always different. 
Jumps from the other initial paths (4, A’, A", and d) often yield 
coinciding | and // polarized components. This is e.g. the case for 
jumps 
from A paths to 7, HI’, and 7" paths 
/ 
” A ” ” u ” 
3, Bl ” ” i: and ie ” 
jp / 
” d ” ” Il ” 
This peculiar behaviour of the © (resp. s and S) paths raises 
the question whether this may possibly be in connection with 
SOMMERFELD's *) view: 
“Infolgedessen drängt sich folgende geometrische Deutung auf: die 
p- und d-Terme entsprechen ebenen Bahnen in der Symmetrieebene 
des Atoms, ähnlich den KerPPrer-Ellipsen; der s-Term hat seinen 
Grund darin, dass die beim Wasserstoff bestehende Punktsymmetrie 
durch die Atomstruktur von Zi und He anfgehoben ist und dass 
daher noch andere Bahnen als die in der Symmetrieebene möglich 
werden”. 
The = (resp. s and S) paths might therefore be imagined 1 to 
the equator, and possibly this situation outside the equator might 
be the reason that in its jump to a path in the equator plane the 
electron does not give coinciding components, whereas it might be 
imagined that in jumps between paths lying in the equator plane, 
the chance to coinciding components is much greater. 
From a private conversation which I had shortly ago with Professor 
Bour on this subject it appeared to me that he nad grounds to 
suppose the X (resp. s and S) paths to be also equatorial. 
It should further be remarked that the complexes which are the 
1) A. SOMMERFELD, Zur Quantentheorie der Spektrallinien, München. Ber. 4 Nov. 
1916, p. 153% 
