12

from those to which they would be exposed if we imagine

that the external forces arise from a number of slowly moving
additional particles which together with the original system
form a system in a stationary state. From this point of view
it seems therefore natural to assume that, with the approx-
imation mentioned, the motion of an atomic system in the
stationary states can be calculated by direct application of
ordinary mechanics, not only under constant external condi-
tions, but in general also during a slow and uniform variation
of these conditions. This assumption, which may be denoted
as the principle of the “mechanical transformability” of the
stationary states, has been introduced in the quantum theory
by Ehrenfest1 ) and is, as it will be seen in the following
sections, of great importance in the discussion of the con-
ditions to be used to fix the stationary states of an atomic
system among the continuous multitude of mechanically pos-
sible motions. In this connection it may be pointed out that
the principle of the mechanical transformability of the sta-
tionary states allows us to overcome a fundamental difficulty
which at first sight would seem to be involved in the defini-
tion of the energy difference between two stationary states
1
) P. Ehrenfest, loc. cit. In these papers the principle in ques-
tion is called the “adiabatic hypothesis” in accordance with the line
of argumentation followed by Ehrenfest in which considerations of
thermodynamical problems play an important part. From the point of
view taken in the present paper, however, the above notation might in
a more direct way indicate the content of the principle and the limits
of its applicability.