Ernest Rutherford
Father of nuclear physics
Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937), was a New Zealand physicist and chemist who did groundbreaking work in atomic and nuclear physics. Often called the father of nuclear physics and the greatest experimentalist since Michael Faraday, he won the 1908 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for studying how elements break apart and the chemistry of radioactive substances.
Rutherford came up with the idea of radioactive half-life, identified the radioactive gas radon, and named two types of radiation: alpha and beta. With Thomas Royds, he proved that alpha radiation is actually helium nuclei. In 1911, he proposed that an atom’s charge sits in a tiny nucleus, based on the gold foil experiment done by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden, which revealed what’s now called Rutherford scattering. The next year, he invited Niels Bohr to his lab, which led to the Bohr model of the atom. In 1917, he carried out the first artificial nuclear reaction by bombarding nitrogen with alpha particles, producing a particle he first called a hydrogen atom but later renamed the proton. He also helped develop the atomic numbering system with Henry Moseley. Beyond nuclear physics, he advanced radio communications and ultrasound technology.
In 1919, Rutherford became Director of the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge. Under him, James Chadwick discovered the neutron in 1932, and that same year John Cockcroft and Ernest Walton performed the first controlled splitting of the nucleus. For his achievements, he was made a baron. After his death in 1937, he was buried in Westminster Abbey near Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton. The element rutherfordium (104Rf) was named after him in 1997, and in 1999 he was ranked the tenth greatest physicist ever. His portrait has appeared on the New Zealand one-hundred-dollar note since 1999.
Rutherford was born on 30 August 1871 in Brightwater, New Zealand, the fourth of twelve children. His father, James, was a Scottish immigrant farmer and mechanic; his mother, Martha, was an English schoolteacher. His birth certificate mistakenly read "Earnest," and his family called him Ern. At age five, he moved to Foxhill, Tasman, and attended Foxhill School. When he was 11, the family moved to Havelock in the Marlborough Sounds to be nearer his father’s flax mill, and he went to Havelock School. In 1887, on his second try, he won a scholarship to Nelson College—he had scored 580 out of 600 on the exam, the highest mark from Nelson. Havelock School gave him a five-volume set called *The Peoples of the World*. He attended Nelson College from 1887 to 1889, becoming head boy in 1889 and playing rugby. He turned down a government cadetship because he still had 15 months of school left. In 1889, again on his second attempt, he won a scholarship to Canterbury College, University of New Zealand, where he studied from 1890 to 1894, joining the debating and science societies. He earned a complex B.A. in Latin, English, and Maths in 1892, an M.A. in Mathematics and Physical Science in 1893, and a B.Sc. in Chemistry and Geology in 1894. He then invented a new type of radio receiver and, in 1895, won an 1851 Research Fellowship to study at Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory. In 1897, he received a B.A. Research Degree and the Coutts-Trotter Studentship from Trinity College.
At Cambridge, Rutherford was one of the first "aliens" (non-Cambridge graduates) allowed to do research, and he worked under J. J. Thomson. With Thomson’s encouragement, he detected radio waves and briefly held the world record for the distance over which electromagnetic waves could be detected—though by the time he presented his results in 1896, Guglielmo Marconi had already sent a message much farther. Still under Thomson, Rutherford studied how X-rays affect gases, work that led Thomson to discover the electron in 1897. After hearing about Henri Becquerel’s work with uranium, Rutherford began exploring radioactivity and found two types of radiation different from X-rays in how far they could penetrate. In 1899, he named them alpha and beta rays. In 1898, on Thomson’s recommendation, he took the Macdonald Chair of Physics at McGill University in Montreal. From 1900 to 1903, he worked with chemist Frederick Soddy, tasking him with identifying the radioactive noble gas emitted by thorium—a gas that was itself radioactive and coated other substances.
- born
- 30 August 1871, Brightwater, New Zealand
- died
- 19 October 1937
- field
- Physics and chemistry
- nationality
- New Zealand
- known_for
- Discovery of radioactive half-life, alpha and beta radiation, the nuclear atom, and the proton
Lore & Background
Rutherford's discoveries include the concept of radioactive half-life, the radioactive element radon, and the differentiation and naming of alpha and beta radiation. Together with Thomas Royds, Rutherford is credited with proving that alpha radiation is composed of helium nuclei. In 1911, he theorised that atoms have their charge concentrated in a very small nucleus. He arrived at this theory through his discovery and interpretation of Rutherford scattering during the gold foil experiment performed by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden. In 1912, he invited Niels Bohr to join his lab, leading to the Bohr model of the atom. In 1917, he performed the first artificially induced nuclear reaction by conducting experiments in which nitrogen nuclei were bombarded with alpha particles. These experiments led him to discover the emission of a subatomic particle that he initially called the "hydrogen atom", but later (more precisely) renamed the proton. He is also credited with developing the atomic numbering system alongside Henry Moseley. His other achievements include advancing the fields of radio communications and ultrasound technology. Rutherford became Director of the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge in 1919. Under his leadership, the neutron was discovered by James Chadwick in 1932. In the same year, the first controlled experiment to split the nucleus was performed by John Cockcroft and Ernest Walton, working under his direction. In honour of his scientific advancements, Rutherford was recognised as a baron of the United Kingdom. After his death in 1937, he was buried in Westminster Abbey near Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton. The chemical element rutherfordium (104Rf) was named after him in 1997. In 1999, he was named the tenth greatest physicist of all time. His portrait has been on the New Zealand one hundred-dollar note since 1999.
Reader's Guide
Ernest Rutherford was born on 30 August 1871 in Brightwater, New Zealand, the fourth of twelve children of James Rutherford, an immigrant farmer and mechanic from Perth, Scotland, and Martha Thompson, a schoolteacher from Hornchurch, England. Rutherford's birth certificate was mistakenly written as 'Earnest'. He was known by his family as Ern. When Rutherford was age 5, he moved to Foxhill, Tasman, New Zealand, and attended Foxhill School. At 11 in 1883, the Rutherford family moved to Havelock, in the Marlborough Sounds, where Ernest attended Havelock School. The move was made to be closer to the flax mill run by Rutherford's father. In 1887, on his second attempt, he won a scholarship to study at Nelson College. On his first examination attempt, he had the highest mark of anyone from Nelson. When he was awarded the scholarship, he had received 580 out of 600 possible marks. After being awarded the scholarship, Havelock School presented him with a five-volume set of books titled The Peoples of the World. He studied at Nelson College between 1887 and 1889, and was head boy in 1889. He also played in the school's rugby team. He was offered a cadetship in government service, but he declined as he still had 15 months of college remaining. In 1889, after his second attempt, he won a scholarship to study at Canterbury College, University of New Zealand, between 1890 and 1894. He participated in its debating society and the Science Society. At Canterbury, he was awarded a complex B.A. in Latin, English and Maths in 1892, a M.A. in Mathematics and Physical Science in 1893, and a B.Sc. in Chemistry and Geology in 1894. Thereafter, Rutherford invented a new form of a radio receiver, and in 1895 he was awarded an 1851 Research Fellowship from the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, to travel to England for postgraduate study in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge. In 1897, he was awarded a B.A. Research Degree and the Coutts-Trotter Studentship from Trinity College, Cambridge.
Did You Know?
- Rutherford coined the terms alpha, beta, and gamma radiation.
- He proved that alpha radiation is composed of helium nuclei.
- He discovered the proton in 1917.
- He was buried in Westminster Abbey near Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"Radioactivity is shown to be accompanied by chemical changes in which new types of matter are being continually produced. … The conclusion is drawn that these chemical changes must be sub-atomic in character." — Ernest Rutherford "1933 October 7, The Calgary Daily Herald, Power Flow From Atoms Impossible by A. C. Cummings (Calgary Herald’s London Bureau), Quote Page 28, Column 1, Calgary, Alberta, Canada." — Ernest Rutherford "It is just as surprising as if a gunner fired a shell at a single sheet of paper and for some reason or other the projectile bounded back again." — Ernest Rutherford "It was almost as incredible as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you." — Ernest Rutherford
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