Abraham Alikhanov
Encyclopedia
Abraham Isahakovich Alikhanov (February 20, 1904 – December 8, 1970) was a Soviet Armenia physicist
, academic, and member of the USSR Academy of Sciences. In 1945, he founded and became director of the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
.
of the Russian Empire
(now Ganja, Azerbaijan
), to an Armenian
family. In 1928 he graduated from the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute. His father was a train driver. His younger brother, Artem Alikhanian
, also became a physicist. In 1941 he was awarded the Stalin Prize.
He died in Moscow
on December 8, 1970, at the age of 66 and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery
.
(under the guidance of Vitaly Khlopin and jointly with Igor Kurchatov
and George Gamov). In 1934, Alikhanov began research on radioactivity and radioactive radiation. In 1934, with A. I. Alikhan’ian and. M. S. Kozodaev, he discovered and studied the phenomenon of the emission of electron-positron pairs by excited nuclei. In 1935,’with Alikhan’ian, he established the dependence of β-spectra on the atomic number of an element. In 1936, working with Alikhan’ian and L. A. Artsimovich, he experimentally corroborated the law of conservation of momentum in pair annihilation. The research initiated by Alikhanov, Alikhan’ian, and S. Ia. Nikitin led to the discovery in 1939 of a stream of fast protons in cosmic rays. In 1949 Alikhanov founded the first nuclear reactor
in the USSR. In 1961, with V. V. Vladimirskii and others, he built the first accelerator in the USSR with strong focusing and an energy of 7GeV (1 GeV = 1 billion eV). Under Alikhanov’s direction, a plan was drawn up and construction begun on an accelerator with a capacity of 70GeV. He received the State Prize of the USSR in 1941, 1948, and 1953. In 1954 he was designated a Hero of Socialist Labor. He was awarded two Orders of Lenin and the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.
On December 1, 1945 he founded the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics in Moscow
. He was the director of the institute until 1968.
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...
, academic, and member of the USSR Academy of Sciences. In 1945, he founded and became director of the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
The Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics is located in Moscow, Russia as a MinAtom physical institute....
.
Biography
He was born on February 20, 1904, in the Elisabethpol GovernorateElisabethpol Governorate
Elisabethpol Governorate or Elizavetpol Governorate was one of the guberniyas of the Russian Empire, with its centre in Elisabethpol . Its area was 44,136 sq. kilometres, and it had 878,415 inhabitants by 1897....
of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
(now Ganja, Azerbaijan
Ganja, Azerbaijan
Ganja is Azerbaijan's second-largest city with a population of around 313,300. It was named Yelizavetpol in the Russian Empire period. The city regained its original name—Ganja—from 1920–1935 during the first part of its incorporation into the Soviet Union. However, its name was changed again and...
), to an Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
family. In 1928 he graduated from the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute. His father was a train driver. His younger brother, Artem Alikhanian
Artem Alikhanian
Artem Isahaki Alikhanian was a Soviet Armenian physicist, one of the founders and first director of the Yerevan Physics Institute, a correspondent member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR , academic of the Armenian Academy of Sciences. USSR State Prizes , Lenin Prize...
, also became a physicist. In 1941 he was awarded the Stalin Prize.
He died in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
on December 8, 1970, at the age of 66 and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery is the most famous cemetery in Moscow, Russia. It is next to the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. It should not be confused with the Novodevichy Cemetery in Saint Petersburg....
.
Scientific career
From 1927 to 1941 Alikhanov worked at the Ioffe Institute. He then took part in creation of the first Soviet cyclotronCyclotron
In technology, a cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator. In physics, the cyclotron frequency or gyrofrequency is the frequency of a charged particle moving perpendicularly to the direction of a uniform magnetic field, i.e. a magnetic field of constant magnitude and direction...
(under the guidance of Vitaly Khlopin and jointly with Igor Kurchatov
Igor Kurchatov
Igor Vasilyevich Kurchatov , was a Soviet nuclear physicist who is widely known as the director of the Soviet atomic bomb project. Along with Georgy Flyorov and Andrei Sakharov, Kurchatov is widely remembered and dubbed as the "father of the Soviet atomic bomb" for his directorial role in the...
and George Gamov). In 1934, Alikhanov began research on radioactivity and radioactive radiation. In 1934, with A. I. Alikhan’ian and. M. S. Kozodaev, he discovered and studied the phenomenon of the emission of electron-positron pairs by excited nuclei. In 1935,’with Alikhan’ian, he established the dependence of β-spectra on the atomic number of an element. In 1936, working with Alikhan’ian and L. A. Artsimovich, he experimentally corroborated the law of conservation of momentum in pair annihilation. The research initiated by Alikhanov, Alikhan’ian, and S. Ia. Nikitin led to the discovery in 1939 of a stream of fast protons in cosmic rays. In 1949 Alikhanov founded the first nuclear reactor
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
in the USSR. In 1961, with V. V. Vladimirskii and others, he built the first accelerator in the USSR with strong focusing and an energy of 7GeV (1 GeV = 1 billion eV). Under Alikhanov’s direction, a plan was drawn up and construction begun on an accelerator with a capacity of 70GeV. He received the State Prize of the USSR in 1941, 1948, and 1953. In 1954 he was designated a Hero of Socialist Labor. He was awarded two Orders of Lenin and the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.
On December 1, 1945 he founded the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. He was the director of the institute until 1968.
Sources
- Armenian Concise Encyclopedia, Ed. by acad. K. Khudaverdian, YerevanYerevanYerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, 1990, Vol. 1, p. 90-91