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SUMMARY:Electrons in the family - Jaume Navarro (Department of History and
  Philosophy of Science)
DTSTART:20061122T130000Z
DTEND:20061122T140000Z
UID:TALK5365@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Nicky Reeves
DESCRIPTION:In 1928\, George Paget Thomson measured the wavelength associa
 ted with an electron in his experiments on refraction. This was the first 
 proof of a principle that the French physicist Louis de Broglie had propos
 ed five years earlier in his doctoral dissertation\, according to which al
 l particles had a wavelength associated with them. Thus\, electrons were t
 he first corpuscles to prove the wave-particle duality. Ironically\, it ha
 d been his father\, Joseph John Thomson\, who\, in 1897\, had first attrib
 uted a corpuscular nature to the undulatory phenomenon of cathode rays\, i
 n a suggestion that is commonly seen as the discovery of the electron. In 
 this paper I want to discuss the possible influence of J.J. Thomson on his
  son's early career.\n\nAfter graduating in Cambridge\, G.P. Thomson moved
  to Aberdeen where he had to start a new laboratory of Physics from scratc
 h. J.J. had been in a similar situation when\, being a young graduate from
  Cambridge\, he was appointed director of the recently created Cavendish L
 aboratory\, and it is justified to imagine some advice from father to son.
  Furthermore\, the specific direction G.P. gave to his research is not ali
 en to his father's theoretical interests. While he was the first to bring 
 forward evidence for the existence of what he called corpuscles\, J.J. alw
 ays believed that electrons were a corpuscular manifestation of some dynam
 ical process taking place in the ether. The measurement of the wavelength 
 associated with the electron and the dual nature of the particle probably 
 appealed to J.J. as much as to G.P.\, but for different reasons. To the fa
 ther\, as a proof of the ethereal nature of the electron. To the son\, as 
 a contribution to the incipient quantum mechanics.
LOCATION:Seminar Room 1\, Department of History and Philosophy of Science
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