Physicists

Cavendish, Henry (physicist)

  (1731-1810) British Experimentalist (Gravitation, Electromagnetism), Physical Chemist Henry Cavendish devised an ingenious method for determining the gravitational constant, which allowed him to make the first accurate measurements of the mass and density of the Earth. He did pioneering work in electricity and was the first to recognize hydrogen as a distinct substance and to […]

Carnot, Nicolas Leonard Sadi (physicist)

  (1796-1832) French Theoretical Physicist (Thermodynamics) Sadi Carnot was a pioneer in the field of thermodynamics, whose search for more efficient steam engines led him to fundamental discoveries about the relationship between work and heat. He was born in Paris on June 1, 1796, the eldest son of an illustrious, erudite family, and named after […]

Broglie, Louis-Victor-Pierre-Raymond, prince de (physicist)

  (1892-1987) French Theoretical Physicist, Quantum Theorist Louis-Victor-Pierre, prince de Broglie, made his groundbreaking contribution to modern physics while still a graduate student at the Sorbonne (University of Paris) in 1924. In 1905, albert einstein had shown that light, long understood by physicists to be a wave, can behave as a particle under certain conditions. […]

Bridgman, Percy Williams (physicist)

  (1882-1961) American Experimentalist (High-Temperature and High-Pressure Physics), Philosopher of Science Percy Williams Bridgman did pioneering work on the behavior of materials at high temperature and high pressure, for which he won the 1946 Nobel Prize in physics. He is, however, most famous for his work in the philosophy of modern physics as founder of […]

Chu, Steven (physicist)

  (1948- ) American Experimentalist, Atomic Physicist, Biophysicist Steven Chu is a brilliant and versatile experimentalist, who was awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize in physics, with Claude Cohen-Tannoudji and William D. Phillips, for his pioneering research in cooling and trapping atoms by using laser light. He was born on February 29, 1948, in Saint Louis, […]

Cherenkov, Pavel Alekseyevich (physicist)

  (1904-1990) Russian Experimentalist, Particle Physicist Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov discovered what came to be known as the Cherenkov effect or Cherenkov radiation, associated with the characteristic electromagnetic radiation that is emitted by charged atomic particles moving at velocities higher than the speed of light in a transparent medium. His discovery earned him a share of […]

Chandrasekhar, Subramanyan (physicist)

  (1910-1995) Indian Theoretical Physicist, Astrophysicist Subramanyan Chandrasekhar laid the basis for modern astrophysics with his theories about the evolution of stars, which led to the concept of black holes. He was part of the pioneering generation that melded physics and astronomy into a dynamic, unified discipline. His career illustrates the formidable barriers faced by […]

Chadwick, Sir James (physicist)

  (1891-1974) British Experimentalist, Particle Theorist, Nuclear Physicist Sir James Chadwick was a British experimentalist who won the 1935 Nobel Prize in physics for his discovery, three years earlier, of the neutron, a particle with no charge made up of a proton and an electron. This discovery, which has been hailed as the beginning of […]

Cockcroft, John Douglas (physicist)

  (1897-1967) British Experimentalist, Nuclear Physicist In collaboration with Ernest Walton, John Douglas Cockcroft built the first particle accelerator, which produced the first nuclear transformations by means of artificially accelerated particles, in 1932. For this achievement, which led to new insights into the properties of atomic nuclei, they shared the 1951 Nobel Prize in physics. […]

Clausius, Rudolf Julius Emmanuel (physicist)

  (1822-1888) Prussian Theoretical Physicist (Thermodynamics) Rudolf Clausius discovered the second law of thermodynamics, otherwise known as the law of entropy, which states that heat cannot flow spontaneously from a cooler body to a hotter one. His espousal of the mechanical theory of heat and his penetrating insights into the relationship between heat and work […]

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