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magnetic spin quantum number
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magnetic spin quantum number

physics
Also known as: spin magnetic quantum number
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Quick Summary

The magnetic spin quantum number, often denoted as ms, is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics that describes an intrinsic form of angular momentum possessed by subatomic particles like electrons. Unlike other quantum numbers that can be whole integers, ms can only take two values: +1/2 or \u22121/2.1

This property, introduced by Samuel Goudsmit and George Uhlenbeck in 1925, explains phenomena such as the magnetic moment of electrons and spectral line behavior in atoms. It is crucial for classifying particles into fermions (half-integer spin) and bosons (integer spin). The magnetic quantum number, which expresses the component of angular momentum in a magnetic field, is related to this spin.12

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6 Britannica Sources
  1. quantum number
  2. quantum number
  3. magnetic quantum number
  4. spin-statistics theorem
  5. subatomic particle - Spin
  6. quantum mechanics - Electron spin and antiparticles

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