August Herman Pfund: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|American physicist}} |
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'''August Herman Pfund''' ([[December 28]], [[1879]] – [[January 4]], [[1949]]), American physicist and spectroscopist. Born [[Madison, Wisconsin|Madison]], [[Wisconsin]]. Discovered the [[hydrogen]] [[Pfund lines]], where an [[electron]] jumps up from or drops down to the fifth fundamental level. |
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| name = August Herman Pfund |
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| birth_date = {{Birth date|1879|12|28|mf=y}} |
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| birth_place = [[Madison, Wisconsin]] |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|1949|1|4|1879|12|28|mf=y}} |
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| nationality = American |
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| field = {{hlist|[[Physics]]|[[Spectroscopy]]|[[Calorimetry]]}} |
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| work_institution = [[Johns Hopkins University]] |
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| alma_mater = {{hlist|[[Johns Hopkins University]]|[[University of Wisconsin–Madison]]}} |
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| doctoral_advisor = [[Robert W. Wood]] |
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| known_for = {{hlist|[[Pfund line]]|[[Pfund telescope]]|[[Pfund sky compass]]}} |
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| prizes = {{ubl|[[The Franklin Institute Awards|Edward Longstreth Medal]] (1922)|[[Frederic Ives Medal]] (1939)}} |
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}} |
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'''August Herman Pfund''' (December 28, 1879 – January 4, 1949) was an American [[physicist]], [[spectroscopist]], and inventor. |
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==Early life== |
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A pfund is also a unit of [[mass]] measurement equal to 500 [[gram]]s. 100 pfund = 1 [[zentner]]. |
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Pfund was born in [[Madison, Wisconsin]] and attended Wisconsin public schools until his entry into the [[University of Wisconsin–Madison]], where he earned a B.S. degree in physics and studied under [[Robert W. Wood]]. |
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==Career== |
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Both Wood and Pfund left Wisconsin for [[Johns Hopkins University]] in 1903. From 1903 to 1905 Pfund was a Carnegie research assistant and continued to work under Wood. In 1906 Pfund earned his Ph.D. in physics and was a Johnston scholar from 1907 to 1909. He remained at Hopkins for the remainder of his career, eventually becoming a full professor and later chair of the physics department. From 1943 to 1944 Pfund served as the president of the [[Optical Society of America]]. |
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Within the [[hydrogen spectral series]] Pfund discovered the fifth series, where an electron jumps up from or drops down to the fifth fundamental level. This Series is known as the "[[hydrogen spectral series#Series|Pfund series]]". He also invented the [[Pfund telescope]], which is a method for achieving a fixed telescope focal point regardless of where the telescope line of sight is positioned, and the [[Pfund sky compass]],<ref>Moody, Lieutenant Commander Alton B., "[http://www.ion.org/publications/abstract.cfm?articleID=102101/ The Pfund Sky Compass]", ''Navigation, Journal of The Institute of Navigation'', Vol. 2, No. 7, 1950.</ref> which arose from Pfund's studies of the polarization of scattered light from the sky in 1944, and which greatly helped [[Polar route|transpolar flights]] by allowing the determination of the Sun's direction in twilight.<ref>John Howard, "[http://www.osa-opn.org/home/articles/volume_21/issue_6/departments/the_history_of_osa/presidents_of_the_late_1940s/#.UWMZz6sY0i4 Presidents of the Late 1940s]", ''Optics and Photonics News'', June 2010.</ref> Pfund is also noted for his work into the area of infrared gas analysis. |
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==See also== |
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*[[Optical Society of America#OSA presidents|Current and past presidents of the Optical Society of America]] |
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{{physicist-stub}} |
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*[[Medieval sunstone]] |
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== References == |
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<references /> |
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==Further reading== |
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[[zh:奥古斯特·普丰特]] |
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* Pelletier, Paul A. (ed.), Prominent Scientists: An index to collective biographies, 2nd ed., Neal-Schuman Publishing, Inc.: New York, 1985 (citations only) |
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* Cattell, J.M.; Cattell, J. American Men of Science, 6th ed., The Science Press: New York, 1938 |
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* Journal of the Optical Society of America, 39:4 (April, 1949) 325. Obit. |
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==External links== |
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* [http://www.opticsinfobase.org/josa/journal/josa/20prez.cfm Articles Published by early OSA Presidents] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150320010027/http://www.opticsinfobase.org/josa/journal/josa/20prez.cfm |date=2015-03-20 }} Journal of the Optical Society of America |
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{{Authority control}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pfund, August Herman}} |
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[[Category:University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni]] |
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[[Category:Spectroscopists]] |
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Latest revision as of 10:37, 29 March 2023
August Herman Pfund | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 28, 1879 |
| Died | January 4, 1949 (aged 69) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | |
| Known for | |
| Awards |
|
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | |
| Institutions | Johns Hopkins University |
| Doctoral advisor | Robert W. Wood |
August Herman Pfund (December 28, 1879 – January 4, 1949) was an American physicist, spectroscopist, and inventor.
Early life
[edit]Pfund was born in Madison, Wisconsin and attended Wisconsin public schools until his entry into the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he earned a B.S. degree in physics and studied under Robert W. Wood.
Career
[edit]Both Wood and Pfund left Wisconsin for Johns Hopkins University in 1903. From 1903 to 1905 Pfund was a Carnegie research assistant and continued to work under Wood. In 1906 Pfund earned his Ph.D. in physics and was a Johnston scholar from 1907 to 1909. He remained at Hopkins for the remainder of his career, eventually becoming a full professor and later chair of the physics department. From 1943 to 1944 Pfund served as the president of the Optical Society of America.
Within the hydrogen spectral series Pfund discovered the fifth series, where an electron jumps up from or drops down to the fifth fundamental level. This Series is known as the "Pfund series". He also invented the Pfund telescope, which is a method for achieving a fixed telescope focal point regardless of where the telescope line of sight is positioned, and the Pfund sky compass,[1] which arose from Pfund's studies of the polarization of scattered light from the sky in 1944, and which greatly helped transpolar flights by allowing the determination of the Sun's direction in twilight.[2] Pfund is also noted for his work into the area of infrared gas analysis.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Moody, Lieutenant Commander Alton B., "The Pfund Sky Compass", Navigation, Journal of The Institute of Navigation, Vol. 2, No. 7, 1950.
- ^ John Howard, "Presidents of the Late 1940s", Optics and Photonics News, June 2010.
Further reading
[edit]- Dr. John Andraos, Named Concepts in Chemistry (L-Z), York University, 2001
- Pelletier, Paul A. (ed.), Prominent Scientists: An index to collective biographies, 2nd ed., Neal-Schuman Publishing, Inc.: New York, 1985 (citations only)
- Cattell, J.M.; Cattell, J. American Men of Science, 6th ed., The Science Press: New York, 1938
- Journal of the Optical Society of America, 39:4 (April, 1949) 325. Obit.
External links
[edit]- Articles Published by early OSA Presidents Archived 2015-03-20 at the Wayback Machine Journal of the Optical Society of America
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