The Magnitudes of theLAbsorption Discontinuities of Gold

Uniform evaporated films of gold have been used in obtaining values for the magnitudes of the $L$ absorption discontinuities and the variations of the absorption coefficients with wave-length. The magnitudes of the discontinuities, where the scattering is considered as negligible, are ${\delta }_{L_{\mathrm{I}}}=1.16\mathrm{}$, ${\delta }_{L_{\mathrm{II}}}=1.39\mathrm{}$, ${\delta }_{L_{\mathrm{III}}}=2.48\mathrm{}$. These are in good agreement with the values obtained for mercury by one of the authors. Several comparisons are made with the data of other observers.