Open AccessThe Lanthanide Elements in Stellar and Laboratory Spectra
Author(s) -
G. M. Wahlgren
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
physica scripta
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.415
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1402-4896
pISSN - 0031-8949
DOI - 10.1238/physica.topical.100a00022
Subject(s) - lanthanide , spectral line , stars , hyperfine structure , galaxy , physics , astronomical spectroscopy , line (geometry) , astrophysics , atomic physics , astronomy , ion , quantum mechanics , geometry , mathematics
The lanthanide elements (Z=57?71) are characterized by the filling of the 4f electronic subshell, which lies close in energy to the 5d and 6s subshells. As a result, the lanthanide spectra can be quite complicated in terms of the number of optical spectral lines, and in some cases their hyperfine structure and isotopic shifts are extremely large. These characteristics have great implications for astronomical investigations. We first review the stellar environments in which study of the lanthanides is important. These include the sun, chemically peculiar stars, and the oldest, most metal-deficient stars of the galaxy. We then touch on laboratory efforts directed at improving atomic data useful in analyzing astronomical spectra, in particular regarding wavelengths, line structure and line strength. Special emphasis is placed on the first three spectra of these elements and a reference list of laboratory analyses is provided