payment page
Less of a household name than colleagues such as Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr nevertheless contributed immensely to the developments of twentieth-century physics. Building on the work of his mentor Ernest Rutherford, Bohr developed his own atomic model that clarified and expanded the field of quantum theory. This and other contributions mark him as one of the century's most distinguished scientists, whose work has fundamentally changed and influenced our understanding of physical reality.
Niels Henrik David Bohr was born on October seven, 1885, in Denmark. The first son of Christian and Ellen Bohr, Niels lived in a large Copenhagen house along with his younger brother Harald and his older sister Jenny. Born eighteen months after Niels, Harald was to become a lifelong close friend and source of inspiration as he went on to his own brilliant career as a mathematician. Their father, Professor Christian Bohr, was an internationally renowned physiologist, and their mother, Ellen, was a warmhearted and intelligent woman. The children benefited from a home that promoted both learning and the development of a strong sense of cultural values.
With this strong background, Bohr went on to a distinguished career at the University of Copenhagen, where he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters for his work on the measurement of surface tension using the vibrations of water jets. He received a doctorate in 1911 for his study of the electron theory of metals. His work highlighted the limitations of classical physics in dealing with the atomic level and anticipated his future explorations.
Bohr's found a clear direction when he met Ernest Rutherford, a professor of physics at the University of Manchester, where Bohr soon joined Rutherford's group. Here, starting around 1912, he began work on some of his most important contributions to quantum physics. He was among the first, for example, to recognize the significance of encircling electrons and their relationship to the atomic nucleus. Moreover, he began to refine Rutherford's model of the atom, which was mechanically unstable, by finding explanations in the undeveloped quantum theories of Max Planck. Bohr's proposal that the atom existed only in a discrete set of energy states still remains relevant, known as the Bohr atomic model, though it has been replaced scientifically.
In 1916, Bohr returned to the University of Copenhagen to assume the Chair of Theoretical Physics, which had been created for him. Here, over the next few years, Bohr devoted himself to the development of the University Institute for Theoretical Physics, which soon became an international center for research and study. During these years Bohr continued to publish his own research, including a 1918 paper titled "On the Quantum Theory of Line Spectra." This paper elaborated on the correspondence principle, a concept first introduced by Bohr in 1913 that applied to the structure of spectra. In 1922, Bohr received the Nobel Prize in physics for his work in atomic structure and radiation.
Bohr's thinking began to extend to the philosophical implications of his scientific investigations. He formulated the principle of complementarity, which responded to the epistemological difficulties of quantum mechanics but applied to physical reality more generally. This principle, which was largely accepted by the physics community, inspired a series of debates with Einstein, who admired Bohr's work but from a critical perspective.
Bohr continued to make substantial contributions to physics throughout his life, theorizing on the compound nucleus, the liquid-drop model, and nuclear fission. Meanwhile, he and his brother became involved in a Danish group that offered support to intellectuals forced to flee from the growing domain of Nazi Germany. He also anticipated the dangers of nuclear weapons, speaking and writing insistently about the need for more open communication among nations. This sense of political responsibility grew as Bohr's status as a public figure rose. Bohr died in 1962 not only a respected scientist but also a symbol of national pride.
