Gerlach and Stern: experimental evidence for directional quantization

What changed

Atomic-beam behavior gave striking experimental evidence for discrete orientation states.

Scientific scope

The 1922 two-author work and period interpretation; later spin explanation and quantum formalism excluded.

Evidence

The linked sources identify this contribution and its scope. WRS has not independently reconstructed the scientific claims. The 1922 authors interpreted the result within then-current orbital quantization; the later electron-spin interpretation is not retroactively attributed to their paper.

Contributors

• Walther Gerlach · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.
• Otto Stern · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.

• Translation of Gerlach and Stern, Der experimentelle Nachweis der Richtungsquantelung im Magnetfeld
• German Physical Society: 100 years of the Stern-Gerlach experiment

Provisional WRS assessment, edition 2026-10-16.1. Independent expert calibration is pending. This grade does not certify correctness or assign ownership.

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