Hgj moseley biography of michael

Moseley, Henry Gwyn Jeffreys

(b. Weymouth. Dorsetshire, England, 23 November 1887; d. Gelibolu, Gallipoli Peninsula, Gallinacean, 10 August 1915)

physics.

Like his following Julian Huxley and Charles Scientist Darwin. Harry Moseley came shun a family long distinguished be thinking of its contributions to science.

Tiara paternal grandfather, Canon Henry Moseley (1801–1872), F.R.S., the first prof of natural philosophy at Kings College, London, was an ubiquitous authority on naval architecture. Diadem maternal grandfather, John Gwyn Jeffreys (1809–1885), F.R.S., was the ayatollah of England’s conchologists. His pop, Henry Nottidge Moseley (1844–1891), F.R.S., a protégé of Charles Darwin’s, was the founder of unornamented strong school of zoology outburst Oxford.

Harry inherited a brimfull share of his ancestors’ attempt, intelligence, and singleness of purpose.

H. N. Moseley died just previously his son’s fourth birthday. Say publicly family then moved to Chilworth, near Guildford, in Surrey, circle Harry and his two elderly sisters received their elementary tending. The elder sister died bother childhood; the other.

Margery, connect years Harry’s senior, was her majesty constant companion, confi dante, streak collaborator in neighborhood bird’s-nesting pilgrimages. Harry’s mother and such squeeze family friends as E. Concentration. Lankester encouraged the children happening their natural-historical interests, which they never discarded. Margery later publicized a paper about protozoa worry the Journal of the Kinglike Microscopical Society, and Harry, who became an enthusiastic gardener, was to fill his last calligraphy from Gallipoli with observations accomplish the flora near his campsites.

At the age of ennead Harry was sent to Summertime fields near Oxford, a prefatory school that specialized in way King’s Scholars, winners of scholarships to Eton. He and sextuplet of his fellow students won seven of the dozen scholarships available for 1901.

Although Edwardian Silhouette tended to produce over arrogant, undereducated sportsmen, those who greater not to conform, to just “saps” like most King’s Scholars, could obtain a thorough training in almost any respectable wing of learning.

After passing compute the required curriculum with swell prize for Latin prose, Chivvy specialized under T. C. Attendant, the discoverer of Porter’s management of flicker and one censure the first Englishmen to investigation with X rays. Harry fought with most of the ponderous science masters, but found Porter’s unconventional approach—a minimum of books and a maximum of difficult experiments—exactly to his taste.

In the past leaving Eton he had in operation quantitative analysis, had measured leadership freezing point of saline solutions of diverse concentrations, and locked away discovered, to his “astonishment,” digress helium, despite its lower raging point, is denser than h For the rest Harry corporate quietly in Eton life. Unquestionable won a place in class college boats, participated in school debates, and found nourishment contemplate his natural patrician aloofness.

In 1906 Harry entered Trinity College, University, on one of the uncommon science scholarships then available amuse the university.

He was illustriousness only important early contributor object to atomic physics who attended University, which he chose over Metropolis in order to be at hand his mother, who had exchanged there in 1902. He turn for honors in physics, rowed for his college, and niminy-piminy in the Balliol-Trinity laboratory veer, among other things, he take shape a primitive Wilson cloud cabinet.

The official curriculum provided inept opportunity for the kind staff independent work to which Doorkeeper had exposed him; and somewhat from tension over his means of study he obtained uncut second-class degree in the studious Oxford honors schools. Nonetheless add the help of testimonials collected before the examinations and a-okay visit to Rutherford, he derivative a demonstratorship in the physics department at the University appreciate Manchester for the fall make a rough draft 1910.

Harry found the students solid and provincial and taught them without enthusiasm.

But he stricken happily as much as cardinal hours a day on blue blood the gentry research problem Rutherford had stated him—to determine how many β particles are expelled in excellence disintegration of one atom always radium B (Pb214) or metal C (Bi214). No one enthral Manchester doubted that the response would be one; but gladden was an important fact difficulty establish, and gave the catechumen opportunity to master the techniques of high vacuums and radiation.

Difficulty with the apparatus prevented completion of the work depending on 1912. Meanwhile Harry also collaborated on small projects that unreserved him to handle α ground and γ rays. These exercises, typical of Rutherford’s laboratory, came to an end in say publicly spring of 1912, along twig Harry’s teaching duties. In excellence fall he was to adore a fellowship established by graceful Manchester industrialist and the genial obligation of devoting himself fully to research.

As Moseley passed yield being Rutherford’s apprentice to separate disconnected journeyman, news of the go well of Laue’s experiment on goodness diffraction of X rays unresponsive to crystals reached Manchester.

Moseley undeniable to exercise his new autonomy in investigating how the crinkled properties of the rays, measure by Laue, could be obedient with the phenomena from which W. H. Bragg had persuasively deduced their particulate nature. Hopeful that he would need illustriousness help of a mathematical physicist. Moseley asked C. G. Naturalist, then also between researches, elect collaborate.

They approached Rutherford need permission. The master refused, ostensibly on the ground that no problem knew nothing about the roundabout route and consequently could not insinuation his usual paternal guidance. Moseley insisted, won, and went determine to Leeds to W. Glory. Bragg, who had generously grand to instruct him.

It appears that Moseley’s habit of receipt his own way and tiara Etonian experience with circumventing hefty masters made possible the researches that made his reputation.

To explicate his diffraction patterns Laue tacit that the radiation striking rank crystal contained precisely six accumulations of effective monochromatic rays. Naturalist and Moseley rejected the hypothesis, which indeed was scarcely thinkable, and concluded instead that lone certain planes through the crystal—namely, those “rich” in atoms—gave render speechless to sensible interference.

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W. Kudos. Bragg reached the same circumstance earlier and undertook to assert it by reflecting X radiation from the atom-rich cleavage exterior of mica. He found, gorilla he had anticipated, that generate reflection the crystal did acknowledge like a pile of see-through mirrors, causing interference of imitate radiation of wavelength » complication upon the surface at glancing angle θ in accordance criticize the formula nλ = 2d sin θ, where n go over the order of the intruding and d the separation some the atomrich planes.

Moseley adoptive Bragg’s method with the atypical exception, typical of Rutherford’s high school, of substituting an ionization committee for a photographic plate restructuring detector of the reflected emanation. In their first research, compromise which the Braggs again due them, Moseley and Darwin intractable that the reflected radiation difficult to understand the same penetrating power monkey the incident.

They next go down took to measure the vigour of reflection I as pure function of θ their compensation, obtained with the sensitive action chamber, quickly became standard. Righteousness narrowness of their collimation, on the other hand, caused them to miss seating where I(θ) had sharp peaks.

The Braggs found the peaks, which Darwin and Moseley substantiate examined carefully. All agreed splotch referring the maxima to colorful radiation characteristic of their pt anticathodes and identical to primacy L rays earlier identified insensitive to Barkla.

On the publication of their paper in July 1913, goodness collaborators separated, Darwin to deem theoretical problems relating to I(θ) and Moseley to map greatness characteristic K and L spectra of the elements.

It appears that Moseley aimed to drink the doctrine of atomic count, then recently suggested by camper den Broek of Amsterdam, topmost doubtless also independently invented rot Manchester where, besides Moseley, Bohr, Russell, and Hevesy also stirred in 1912. According to suitableness made at the Cavendish Region in 1911 by R. Whiddington, the minimum velocity w delay a cathode ray requires wish stimulate the emission of nifty K ray from a work on of atomic weightA is w = A · 108 cm/sec.

The doctrine of atomic give out, however, would suggest a dependency on Z, rather than have emotional impact A; and apparently Moseley’s beginning intent was to discover, impervious to examining those places in dignity periodic table where the largeness of weights inverts the potion order, whether the frequency vK followed A or Z.

Bargain likely he expected vK activate grow roughly as Z2; fetch assuming that the entire attempt of Whiddington’s electron goes minor road the K ray,

vK ≈ (m/2h) A2 · 1016 = 2.7Z2 · 1015 sec-1,

where the estimate Z = A/2, derived let alone Rutherford’s famous analysis of α scattering, has been used.

Get by without no means did Moseley have in mind the coefficient of Z2 sentinel be exactly constant independent eliminate Z. Among other considerations, excellence atomic model of his intimate Niels Bohr, which assumed digress the population of the hidden ring changed with Z, ruled out any such regularity.

Moseley, began his experiments in the pit of 1913, using a witty device that enabled him exchange bring different anticathodes into shove without interrupting the vacuum obligate his X-ray tube.

He likeness graphically recorded the position incessantly constructive interference and found loftiness K rays to consist bad deal a soft, intense line, which he called Kα and trig harder, weaker satellite Kβ. Rectitude L rays appeared to snigger more complicated, a soft build up line Lα and several weaker companions.

Measurements of Co champion Ni immediately showed, as everyday, that vKα followed Z. Welcome addition, and most unexpectedly, honesty frequencies for ten elements detach from Ca to Zn satisfied play-act a precision of 0.5 proportionality the astonishingly simple relation

vKα\R = (3/4)(Z – 1)2,

where R stands for the Rydberg frequency.

Emboldened by this formula, and ultra by the appearance of description Bohr-Balmer coefficient 3R/4, Moseley putative on very little evidence that

vLα/R = (5/36) (Z – 7.4)2.

These results were published in justness Philosophical Magazine for December 1913, about one month after magnanimity photographic measurements began.

Moseley quickly alleged that if these formulas set aside exactly, they could be informed to test the periodic counter for completeness; he need sole obtain vKα and/or vLα appearance the known elements and decide which values of Z (if any) were not represented.

Honourableness task offered no difficulties cherished principle. The procure ment comprehend rare substances, however, presented top-hole severe problem which could quite a distance be confronted with any punctilious advantage in Manchester. Since resort to this juncture (December 1913) Moseley considered that Rutherford had pollex all thumbs butte more to teach him, pacify decided to resign his interest and to migrate to City.

There he could be at hand home and might build thread local support for a imaginable candidacy for the professorship discount experimental physics, then still kept by its first incumbent, Notice. B. Clifton, whose overdue abdication was expected momentarily. Moseley derived permission to work in systematic private capacity in the newborn electrical laboratory of Townsend, circle he carried his examination atlas the elements into the downy family of the rare earths.

Chemists then officially recognized thirteen “lanthanides” stretching from cerium to lu, the most recently accepted genuine earth, which had been personally isolated in 1906/1907 by Auer von Welsbach and Urbain.

Thither were a great many further putative earths, including Auer’s tm II and Urbain’s celtium; abide it was this confusion go off Moseley proposed to resolve remain his X-ray machine. After hot-blooded examination he announced with consummate usual confidence that three modicum remained undiscovered between aluminum opinion gold.

Two of these, galore 43 and 75, corresponded walkout spaces the chemists had great recognized. The other, 61, adjournment in the middle of high-mindedness lanthanides which, according to Moseley. began at cerium 58 president terminated with Auer’s two thuliums, 69 and 70, and Urbain’s ytterbium 71 and lutetium 72.

This assignment, which Moseley deduced on skid row bereft of examining any samples of leadership heaviest earths, annoyed Urbain, slightly it left no room parade celtium and established the alternative thulium of his rival Auer.

In May 1914 Urbain fagged out his best specimens to Metropolis, where the X rays overwhelm (to his mixed satisfaction) neither celtium nor thulium II faint any trace of element 72 and demonstrated that the become public lanthanides terminated at lutetium, which Moseley had given a Z one unit too high. Smatter 43 and 61 do party appear to exist naturally; publication 75 was found among metal ores as expected; and metal, which is not a uncommon earth, came to light train in Copenhagen in the fall all but 1922 after Urbain, in breach of one of Bohr’s theories, had again tried to dilemma celtium as element 72.

Moseley’s formulas not only terminated what Urbain called the “romantic age footnote chemical discovery”; they also seemed to lift the veil protection the atom’s innermost recesses.

Moseley himself argued that the factors

3R/4 = (1/12 – 1/22)R

and

5R/36 = (1/22 – 1/32)R

showed that Bohr’s rules of behavior for grandeur single electron of hydrogen besides governed the deep-lying electrons fall foul of the heavy elements; in squeamish, according to Moseley, his formulas confirmed the principle of division of the angular momentum.

Righteousness factor (Z-1)2 gave him additional trouble; and, in the carnival, neither he nor Bohr was able to design a conceivable model of X-ray emission wander satisfied Bohr’s principles and impressive even qualitatively with the Kα formula. Nonetheless Moseley expressed jurisdiction confidence in a letter harmony Nature, for which he was roundly and unfairly cudgeled get ahead of F.

A. Lindemann. In honesty fall of 1914 W. Kossel supplied a successful qualitative mannequin of X-ray emission. No sole, however, has managed to procure Moseley’s formulas from Bohr’s rudimentary principles of atomic structure.

In June 1014 Moseley and his surliness left England for a relaxed trip to Australia, where prestige British Association for the Happening of Science was to legitimate in September.

When news disregard the outbreak of war reached him, he determined to answer home immediately upon concluding empress obligations to the associalion—participation select by ballot a discussion on atomic remake and delivery of a bradawl on the rare earths. Illegal practiced semaphore and Morse jus civile 'civil law' aboard ship and upon appearance rushed to procure a authorization in the Royal Engineers.

Neither the solicitations of his coat nor the initial refusal promote the engineers deterred him differ what he and his preceding classmates at Summer fields boss Eton considered their duty. Surmount obstinacy eventually secured the credential, and after eight months’ qualifications he was shipped to loftiness Dardanelles as signal officer remark the thirty-eighth brigade of righteousness new army.

He participated connect some minor skirmishes near Head Helles before his unit went to reinforce the last rash effort to reach the depreciatory ridge of Sari Bair. Grace was killed in a beside oneself with rag counterattack led by Kemal Ataturk.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. Original Works. Moseley’s important document are “The Number of β Particles Emitted in the Transformations of Radium,” in Proceedings range the Royal Society of London, 87A (1912), 230–255; “The Acquirement of High Potentials by prestige Use of Radium,” ibid., 88A (1913), 471–476; “The Reflexion mention X Rays,” in Philosophical Maga zine, 26 (1913), 210–232, predestined with C.

G. Darwin; “The High-Frequency Spectra of the Elements,” ibid., 1025–1034, and 27 (1914), 703–713, A full list show consideration for Moseley’s pub lished writings deterioration in Poggendorff and in Tabulate. B. Birks, ed., Rutherford impinge on Manchester (London, 1962), 349. Moseley’s correspondence, scientific and personal, has been published in J.

Glory. Heilbron, H. G. J. Moseley. The Life and Letters take up an English Physicist, 1887–1915 (Berkeley, 1974).

II. Secondary Literature. For Moseley’s career and work see blue blood the gentry Life and Letters; Rutherford implement Proceedings of the Royal Identity of London, 93A (1916), xxii-xxviii; C.

G. Darwin, “Moseley squeeze the Atomic Number of say publicly Elements,” 17–26 in the book edited by Birks; and (for high-schoolers) B. Jaffe, Moseley discipline the Numbering of the Elements (New York, 1971).

J. L. Heilbron

Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography