Arnold sommerfeld

Arnold Sommerfeld (December 6, 1868 - April 26, 1951) was a German physicist who introduced the fine structure constant in 1919. In addition to his contributions as a scientist in the fields of atomic physics and quantum physics, his work as a teacher is noteworthy, Sommerfeld was the last to propose a model as director of doctoral theses of numerous future Nobel Prize winners in both physics and chemistry.

Biography

Arnold Sommerfeld was born in Königsberg on December 5, 1868, and also studied mathematics. In 1891 he moved to the University of Göttingen, where he obtained a professorship in 1896. From 1897 he worked as a professor at the Clausthal-Zellerfeld University, and in 1900 as a professor of technical engineering at the University of Aachen, where he developed his theory of hydrodynamic lubrication.

In Göttingen

In October 1893, Sommerfeld transferred to the University of Göttingen, which was the center of mathematics in Germany. There he became an assistant to Theodor Liebisch at the Mineralogical Institute, thanks to a lucky personal contact: Liebisch he had been a professor at the University of Königsberg and a friend of the Sommerfeld family.

In September 1894, Sommerfeld became an assistant to Felix Klein, which included taking extensive notes during Klein's lectures and writing them for the Mathematics Reading Room, as well as managing the reading room. The Habilitationsschrift of Somerfeld was completed under Klein, in 1895, allowing Sommerfeld to become Privatdozent in Göttingen.

Sommerfeld's first work under Klein's supervision was an impressive paper on the mathematical theory of diffraction, including an important theoretical part on differential equations. Other important works dealt with the study of the propagation of electromagnetic waves in cables and with the study of the field produced by a moving electron.

As a Privatdozent, Sommerfeld lectured on a wide range of topics in mathematics and mathematical physics. His Lectures on Partial Differential Equations were first given in Göttingen, and evolved throughout his teaching career to become Volume VI of his Lectures on Theoretical Physics textbook series, under the title Partial Differential Equations in Physics..

Klein's 1895 and 1896 lectures on rotating bodies led Klein and Sommerfeld to write a four-volume text Die Theorie des Kreisels (The Theory of Rotating Bodies), a collaboration that lasted 13 years, of 1897 to 1910. The first two volumes dealt with theory, and the last two with applications in geophysics, astronomy, and technology. Sommerfeld's association with Klein influenced Sommerfeld's mental turn toward applied mathematics and the art of giving. conferences.

During his stay in Göttingen, Sommerfeld met Johanna Höpfner, daughter of Ernst Höpfner, Göttingen's curator. In October 1897 Sommerfeld began to occupy the chair of Mathematics at the Bergakademie de Clausthal-Zellerfeld; he was the successor to Wilhelm Wien. This appointment provided him with enough income to marry Johanna.

At Klein's request, Sommerfeld took over as editor of volume V of the Enzyklopädie der mathematischen Wissenschaften; it was a major undertaking that lasted from 1898 to 1926.

In Aachen

In 1900, Sommerfeld was appointed Extraordinary Professor of the Chair of Applied Mechanics at the Königliche Technische Hochschule Aachen (later RWTH University Aachen), thanks to Klein's efforts. In Aachen he developed the theory of hydrodynamics, which would interest him for a long time. Later, at the University of Munich, Sommerfeld's students Ludwig Hopf and Werner Heisenberg would write their doctoral theses on this topic. For his contributions to the knowledge of slide bearing lubrication during his stay in Aachen, he was appointed one of the 23 "Men of Tribology" by Duncan Dowson

In Munich

From 1906, Sommerfeld established himself as regular professor of physics and director of the new Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University of Munich. He was selected for these positions by Wilhelm Röntgen, director of the Institute for Physics in Munich, who Sommerfeld considered called for a "privileged sphere of action".

Until the late 19th and early 20th centuries, experimental physics was considered in Germany to have a superior status within the community. At the beginning of the 20th century, theorists such as Sommerfeld in Munich and Max Born at the University of Göttingen, with their early training in mathematics, turned this situation around so that mathematical physics, i.e. theoretical physics, became the main driver, and experimental physics was used to verify or advance the theory. After receiving PhDs from Sommerfeld, Wolfgang Pauli, Werner Heisenberg and Walter Heitler became assistants to Born and made important contributions to the development of quantum mechanics, which then it was in a very rapid development.

Peter Debye (in 1908), Paul Ewald (in 1912), or Hans Bethe (in 1928) can also be cited among his doctoral students. In total, he supervised about 30 doctoral theses during his years at the University of Munich.

During his 32 years of teaching in Munich, Sommerfeld taught general and specialized courses, as well as organized seminars and colloquia[14]. The general courses dealt with mechanics, mechanics of deformable bodies, electrodynamics, optics, thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, and partial differential equations in physics. They were taught four hours a week, 13 weeks in winter and 11 weeks in summer, and were intended for students who had taken courses in experimental physics from Röntgen and, later, from Wilhelm Wien. There was also a weekly two-hour presentation for problem discussion. The specialized courses were topical and based on Sommerfeld's research interests; material from these courses later appeared in Sommerfeld's scientific literature publications. The goal of these special lectures was to address current issues in theoretical physics and for Sommerfeld and the students to gain a systematic understanding of the topic, regardless of whether or not they succeeded in solving the problem posed by the current issue.[19] For the During seminar and colloquium periods, students were assigned articles from the current literature and then prepared an oral presentation. From 1942 to 1951, Sommerfeld worked on putting his lecture notes in order for publication, which were published. published as the Lectures on Theoretical Physics in six volumes.

In 1927 Sommerfield applied Fermi-Dirac statistics to Drude's model of electrons in metals. The new theory solved many of the problems by predicting the thermal properties of metals.

Sommerfeld died in 1951 in Munich from injuries in a traffic accident.

Visit to Spain in 1921

In 1921 he visited Madrid, and being aware of the discoveries of Miguel A. Catalán, he was interested in meeting him personally. In the first interview, Miguel had no qualms about giving him a copy of his work on manganese, before publishing it.

Works

Articles

• Arnold Sommerfeld, "Mathematische Theorie der Diffraction" (The Mathematical Theory of Diffraction), Math. Ann. 47(2–3), pp. 317–374. (1896). doi 10.1007/bf01447273.
  • Translated by Raymond J. Nagem, Mario Zampolli, and Guido Sandri in Mathematical Theory of Diffraction (Birkhäuser Boston, 2003), ISBN 0-8176-3604-8
• Arnold Sommerfeld, "Uber die Ausbreitung der Wellen in der Drahtlosen Telegraphie" (The Propagation of Waves in Wireless Telegraphy), Ann. Physik [4] 28665 (1909); 6295 (1920); 811135 (1926).
• Arnold Sommerfeld, "Some Reminiscences of My Teaching Career," American Journal of Physics Volume 17, Number 5, 315-316 (1949). Address of reception of the Oersted Medal of 1948.

Books

Sommerfeld made numerous literary contributions, writing textbooks on theoretical physics and applied mathematics, including:

• The series "Lectures on Theoretical Physics", which contains:

1.Mechanics. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

2.Mechanics of deformable bodies. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

3.Electrodynamics. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

4.Optics. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

5. Thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

6. Partial differential equations in physics. Lectures on Theoretical Physics.

• Mathematical Theory of Diffraction
• Atomic Structure and Spectral Lines

Eponymy

In addition to the different scientific concepts that bear his name, one must:

• The lunar crater Sommerfeld carries this name in his memory.
• The asteroid (32809) Sommerfeld also commemorates its name.