Aage Niels Bohr
Encyclopedia
Aage Niels Bohr (ˈɔːʊ̯ ˌnels ˈboɐ̯ˀ; June 19, 1922 – September 9, 2009) was a Danish
nuclear physicist
and Nobel laureate
, and the son of the famous physicist
and Nobel laureate
Niels Bohr
.
and Werner Heisenberg
, who were working with his father at the Institute for Theoretical Physics (now the Niels Bohr Institute
) at the University of Copenhagen
.
In 1940, shortly after the German occupation of Denmark, Bohr began his physics degree at the University of Copenhagen. In October 1943, shortly before he was to be arrested by the German police, Niels Bohr escaped to Sweden
with his family, later travelling to London and on to work on the Manhattan Project
. During this time, Aage Bohr travelled with his father, acting as his assistant and secretary.
The Bohrs returned to Denmark in 1945, and Aage returned to University, graduating with a master's degree in 1946, with a thesis concerned with some aspects of atomic stopping problems. Following graduation, he became an associate at the Niels Bohr Institute.
Bohr worked at the Institute for Advanced Study
in Princeton
in early 1948, and later at Columbia University
from January 1949 to August 1950. While in the US, Bohr married Marietta Soffer; the couple had three children, Vilhelm, Tomas and Margrethe.
Bohr became a professor at the University of Copenhagen in 1956, and, following his father's death in 1962, succeeded him as director of the Niels Bohr Institute, a position he held until 1970. He was also a member of the board of the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics (Nordita) from its inception in 1957, becoming its director in 1975.
. However, there were also properties which could not be explained, including the non-spherical distribution of charge in certain nuclei.
James Rainwater
of Columbia University suggested a model of the nucleus which could explain a non-spherical charge distribution in a 1950 paper. Bohr, visiting Columbia at the time, had independently come up with the same idea, and submitted a paper for publication about a month after Rainwater's which discussed the same problem along more general lines. Bohr later developed the idea further, in 1951 publishing a paper which comprehensively treated the relationship between oscillations of the surface of the nucleus and the movement of the individual nucleon
s.
On his return to Copenhagen in 1950, Bohr began working with Ben Mottelson
to compare the theoretical work with experimental data. In three papers which were published in 1952-53, Bohr and Mottelson demonstrated close agreement between theory and experiment, for example showing that the energy levels of certain nuclei could be described by a rotation spectrum. This work stimulated new theoretical and experimental studies. As a result, he won the Atoms for Peace Award
in 1969.
Bohr, Mottelson and Rainwater were jointly awarded the 1975 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery of the connection between collective motion and particle motion in atomic nuclei and the development of the theory of the structure of the atomic nucleus based on this connection".
Bohr and Mottelson continued to work together, publishing a two-volume monograph
, Nuclear Structure. The first volume, Single-Particle Motion, appeared in 1969, and the second volume, Nuclear Deformations, in 1975.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
nuclear physicist
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
and Nobel laureate
Nobel Prize in Physics
The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded once a year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895 and awarded since 1901; the others are the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Prize, and...
, and the son of the famous physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and Nobel laureate
Nobel Prize in Physics
The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded once a year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895 and awarded since 1901; the others are the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Prize, and...
Niels Bohr
Niels Bohr
Niels Henrik David Bohr was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum mechanics, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922. Bohr mentored and collaborated with many of the top physicists of the century at his institute in...
.
Life and career
Bohr was born in Copenhagen in 1922, and grew up surrounded by physicists such as Wolfgang PauliWolfgang Pauli
Wolfgang Ernst Pauli was an Austrian theoretical physicist and one of the pioneers of quantum physics. In 1945, after being nominated by Albert Einstein, he received the Nobel Prize in Physics for his "decisive contribution through his discovery of a new law of Nature, the exclusion principle or...
and Werner Heisenberg
Werner Heisenberg
Werner Karl Heisenberg was a German theoretical physicist who made foundational contributions to quantum mechanics and is best known for asserting the uncertainty principle of quantum theory...
, who were working with his father at the Institute for Theoretical Physics (now the Niels Bohr Institute
Niels Bohr Institute
The Niels Bohr Institute is a research institute of the University of Copenhagen. The research of the institute spans astronomy, geophysics, nanotechnology, particle physics, quantum mechanics and biophysics....
) at the University of Copenhagen
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen is the oldest and largest university and research institution in Denmark. Founded in 1479, it has more than 37,000 students, the majority of whom are female , and more than 7,000 employees. The university has several campuses located in and around Copenhagen, with the...
.
In 1940, shortly after the German occupation of Denmark, Bohr began his physics degree at the University of Copenhagen. In October 1943, shortly before he was to be arrested by the German police, Niels Bohr escaped to Sweden
Rescue of the Danish Jews
The rescue of the Danish Jews occurred during Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark during World War II. On October 1st 1943 Nazi leader Adolf Hitler ordered Danish Jews to be arrested and deported...
with his family, later travelling to London and on to work on the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
. During this time, Aage Bohr travelled with his father, acting as his assistant and secretary.
The Bohrs returned to Denmark in 1945, and Aage returned to University, graduating with a master's degree in 1946, with a thesis concerned with some aspects of atomic stopping problems. Following graduation, he became an associate at the Niels Bohr Institute.
Bohr worked at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
in Princeton
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
in early 1948, and later at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
from January 1949 to August 1950. While in the US, Bohr married Marietta Soffer; the couple had three children, Vilhelm, Tomas and Margrethe.
Bohr became a professor at the University of Copenhagen in 1956, and, following his father's death in 1962, succeeded him as director of the Niels Bohr Institute, a position he held until 1970. He was also a member of the board of the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics (Nordita) from its inception in 1957, becoming its director in 1975.
Physics
By the late 1940s it was known that the properties of atomic nucleus could not be explained by the then-current models (such as the liquid drop model developed by Niels Bohr amongst others). The shell model, developed in 1949, allowed some additional features to be explained, in particular the so-called magic numbersMagic number (physics)
In nuclear physics, a magic number is a number of nucleons such that they are arranged into complete shells within the atomic nucleus...
. However, there were also properties which could not be explained, including the non-spherical distribution of charge in certain nuclei.
James Rainwater
James Rainwater
Leo James Rainwater was an American physicist who shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1975 for his part in determining the asymmetrical shapes of certain atomic nuclei.-Biography:...
of Columbia University suggested a model of the nucleus which could explain a non-spherical charge distribution in a 1950 paper. Bohr, visiting Columbia at the time, had independently come up with the same idea, and submitted a paper for publication about a month after Rainwater's which discussed the same problem along more general lines. Bohr later developed the idea further, in 1951 publishing a paper which comprehensively treated the relationship between oscillations of the surface of the nucleus and the movement of the individual nucleon
Nucleon
In physics, a nucleon is a collective name for two particles: the neutron and the proton. These are the two constituents of the atomic nucleus. Until the 1960s, the nucleons were thought to be elementary particles...
s.
On his return to Copenhagen in 1950, Bohr began working with Ben Mottelson
Ben Roy Mottelson
Benjamin Roy Mottelson is an American-born Danish nuclear physicist. He won the 1975 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on the non-spherical geometry of atomic nuclei....
to compare the theoretical work with experimental data. In three papers which were published in 1952-53, Bohr and Mottelson demonstrated close agreement between theory and experiment, for example showing that the energy levels of certain nuclei could be described by a rotation spectrum. This work stimulated new theoretical and experimental studies. As a result, he won the Atoms for Peace Award
Atoms for Peace Award
The Atoms for Peace Award was established in 1955 through a grant of $1,000,000 by the Ford Motor Company Fund. An independent nonprofit corporation was set up to administer the award for the development or application of peaceful nuclear technology. It was created in response to U.S. President...
in 1969.
Bohr, Mottelson and Rainwater were jointly awarded the 1975 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery of the connection between collective motion and particle motion in atomic nuclei and the development of the theory of the structure of the atomic nucleus based on this connection".
Bohr and Mottelson continued to work together, publishing a two-volume monograph
Monograph
A monograph is a work of writing upon a single subject, usually by a single author.It is often a scholarly essay or learned treatise, and may be released in the manner of a book or journal article. It is by definition a single document that forms a complete text in itself...
, Nuclear Structure. The first volume, Single-Particle Motion, appeared in 1969, and the second volume, Nuclear Deformations, in 1975.