Physics the effect produced upon the structure of the spectral lines of light emitted or absorbed by atoms subjected to a moderately strong magnetic field, resulting in the splitting of each spectrum line into two or three lines () or into many lines ()
Origin:
after Pieter Zeeman
See Zeeman effect in American Heritage Dictionary 4
noun
The splitting of single spectral lines of an emission spectrum into three or more polarized components when the radiation source is in a magnetic field.