DOC.
11
ARGUMENTS FOR MOLECULAR AGITATION 145
1.
Eucken's results
on
the
specific
heat
of
hydrogen
make
probable
the existence
of
a zero-point energy equal
to
hv/2.
2.
The
assumption
of
zero-point energy opens
a
way
for
deriving
Planck's
radiation formula without
recourse
to
any
kind of discontinuities.
Nevertheless,
it
seems
doubtful that the other difficulties
can
also be
overcome
without the
assumption
of
quanta.
Zurich,
December
1912.
(Received
on
5
January
1913)
Remarks Added
in
Proof
Prof. Weiss drew
our
attention
to
the fact that Curie's measurements
on
the
paramagnetism
of
gaseous oxygen
also show that
the
latter's rotational
energy
at
high
temperatures
has the value demanded
by
the classical
theory,
and not
one
smaller
by
hv/2,
as
would be
expected
without the
assumption
of
a zero-point energy.
It is
easy
to show that
in
the latter
case,
given
the
accuracy
of Curie's
measurements,
deviations
from Curie's law would have had
to show
up.
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