[London, Taylor & Francis], 1913. 8vo. Original printed wrappers. The fragile wrappers are detached, but fully intact. Merely tiny parts of the thin backstrip lacking. Three small tears to front wrapper, no loss, as well as a couple of creses. Back wrapper with a slight bend to the corner and minor fading to extremities. Pp. (9)-31.
Scarce first edition, off-print issue with presentation-inscription, of Bohr's seminal first work on nuclear physics, being the work that lays the foundation for his atomic theory (published before his ""On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules""), in which he is able to conclude ""that a hydrogen atom contains only 1 electron outside the positively charged nucleus, and that a helium atom only contains 2 electrons outside the nucleus ."" ""Bohr's 1913 paper on alpha-particles [i.e. the present], which he had begun in Manchester, and which had led him to the question of atomic structure, marks the transition to his great work, also of 1913, on that same problem. While still in Manchester, he had already begun an early sketch of those entirely new ideas."" (Pais, p. 128). The present work must be considered one of the most important to the birth of modern atomic theory.The work is inscribed to renowned Danish physicist and meteorologist Dan la Cour (1876-1942), son of the great Poul la Cour (1846-1908), who is considered the ""Danish Edison"". The inscription reads as thus: ""Hr. Docent Afdelingschef D. la Cour/ med venlig Hilsen/ fra/ Forfatteren."" [In Danish, i.e.: ""Mr. Assistant Professor Head of Department D. la Cour/ with kind regards/ from/ the author.""].Dan la Cour was the assistant of Niels Bohr's father, Christian Bohr, and a well known scientist. From 1903, he was head of the department of the Meteorological Institute, and from 1923 leader thereof. From 1908 he was Associate Professor at the Polytechnic College. His original scientific works are highly respected, as are his original apparati for measuring earth magnetism which are considered highly valuable. ""His original intelligence, which in many ways resemble that of his father, also bore fruit in his patenting of various inventions: the ""Pyknoprobe"", developed to quickly determine the different layers of the sea"" a use of termite in quickly heating food and drinks out in the open under unfavourable weather conditions."" (From the Danish Encyclopaedia - own translation). He wrote a number of important and esteemed works and was member of the Danish Scientific Academy as well as many prominent international scientific commissions of meteorology and geophysics (i.e. president of the International Geodetical and Geophysical Union). He was also honorary Doctor at the George Washington University. After finishing his studies in Copenhagen, Bohr went to Cambridge in order to pursue his studies on electron theory under the guidance of J.J. Thompson. Thompson, who was beginning to lose interest in the subject by now, did, however, not recognize the genious of the young Bohr, and as soon as he could, Bohr went to Manchester, where Ernest Rutherford had established a laboratory. ""There, from March to July 1912, working with utmost concentration, he [i.e. Bohr] laid the foundation for his greatest achievements in physics, the theory of the atomic constitution."" (DSB). Bohr's survey of the implications of Rutherford's atomic model had led him to attack the much harder problem which lay at the core of it, namely determining the exact nature of the relation between the atomic number and the number of electrons in the atom. ""Bohr obtained a much deeper insight into the problem by a brilliant piece of work, which he - working, as he said, ""day and night"" - completed with astonishing speed"" (DSB), that paper being the present ""On the Theory of the Decrease of Velocity of Moving electrified Particles on passing through Matter"", which thus constitutes his very first publication on the subject, published immediately after this dense period of 1912, in the Philosophical Magazine of January 1913. ""The problem was one of immediate interest for Rutherford's laboratory: in their passage through a material medium, alpha particles continually lose energy by ionizing the atoms they encounter, at a rate depending on their velocity. Their energy loss limits the depth to which the particles can penetrate into the medium, and the relation between this depth, or range, and the velocity offers a way of determining this velocity. What Bohr did was to analyze the ionizing process on the basis of the Rutherford model of the atom and thus express the rate of energy loss in terms of the velocity by a much more accurate formula than had so far been achieved-a formula, in fact, to which modern quantum mechanics adds only nonessential refinements"" (DSB). In the present work, Bohr was thus able to conclude: ""In this paper the theory of the decrease of velocity of moving electrified particles in passing through matter is given in a form, such that the rate of the decrease in the velocity depends on the frequency of vibration of the electrons in the atoms of the absorbing material."" as well as the seminal words that have been formative for the birth of the modern atomic theory: ""Adopting Prof. Rutherford's theory of the constitution of atoms, it seems that it can be concluded with great certainty, from the absorption of alpha-rays, that a hydrogen atom contains only 1 electron outside the positively charged nucleus, and that a helium atom only contains 2 electrons outside the nucleus "". Bohr continues: ""These questions and some further information about the constitution of atoms which may be got from experiments on the absorption of alpha-rays, will be discussed in more detail in a later paper."" (pp. 30-31 of the original paper) - the last sentence referring directly to his three part ""On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules"", in which he went on to present his postulates of the orbital structure of the electrons and their quantized radiation. Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 5. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 240-41. Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, pp. 117-31.
London, Taylor & Francis, 1913. 8vo. Bound in one nice contemporary half calf binding with gilt leather title-label to spine. Published in ""The London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science"", Vol. 26. No. 151-156 offered. Small repair to spine and blind stamped to lower part of title page. Front hindge a bit loose. A fine copy. The Bohr papers: pp. 1-25" pp. 476-502 pp. 857-875. [Moseley:] Pp. 1024-1034. [Entire volume: VIII, 1064 pp.+ 24 plates].
First edition of Bohr's seminal main work, which constitutes the departure from classical theories to the birth of modern atomic physics" by incorporating Planck's quantum postulate it became possible to calculate the wavelength of the hydrogen emission and thus to explain the regularity of the Balmer-lines. In 1922 Bohr was awarded the Nobel Prize ""for his services in the investigation of the structure of atoms and of the radiation emanating from them"".""Bohr's three-part paper postulated the existence of stationary states of an atomic system whose behavior could be described using classical mechanics, while the transition of the system from one stationary state to another would represent a non-classical process accompanied by emission or absorption of one quantum of homogeneous radiation, the frequency of which was related to its energy by Planck's equation"" (Norman).In his previous paper (""On the Theory of Decrease of Velocity of Moving Electrified Particles on passing through Matter"") Bohr had adopted Rutherford's nuclear model of the atom, and had become convinced that it was the peripherical electrons that determined the chemical properties of an element, whereas the nucleus determine the radioactive properties. However, Rutherford's model had an apparent explanatory problem: Why were the negatively charged electrons held away from the positive nucleus? In his doctorial dissertation on the electron theory of metals, Bohr had clarified the limitations of this theory, in particular its ability to explain magnetic properties, and he had shown how this arose from the classical nature of some of its foundations. Bohr strongly expected that the key to solving this problem was to be found in some way of introducing Planck's law of quantum action.In the beginning of 1913 Bohr heard about Rydberg's remarkable discovery in spectroscopy. Rydberg's formula could represent the frequencies of the lines of the hydrogen spectrum in the simplest form in terms of two integers. As soon as Bohr saw this formula, he immediately recognized that it gave him the missing clue to the correct way to introduce Planck's law of quantum of action into the description of the atomic systems. The rest of the academic year was spent reconstructing the whole theory upon the new foundation and expounding it in a large treatise, which was immediately published as these three papers in the 'Philosophical Magazine'. It was in these papers that Bohr first gave his postulates of the orbital structure of the electrons and their quantized radiation.Bohr's atomic theory inaugurated two of the most adventurous decades in the history of science. Bohr introduced the following postulates: 1. An electron can revolve about its nucleus only in certain special circular orbits. 2. The ordinary electron revolves about its nucleus in an invariable orbit, without radiating or absorbing energy. 3. Radiation takes place when and only when the electron falls from an orbit with greater energy to one of less energy.""In his great papers of 1913, Bohr presented his theory as being founded upon two postulates, whose formulation he refined in later papers. The first postulate enunciates the existence of stationary states of an atomic system, the behavior of which may be described in terms of classical mechanics" the second postulate states that the transition of the system from one stationary state to another is a nonclassical process, accompanied by the emission or absorption of one quantum of homogeneous radiation, whose frequency is connected with its energy by Planck's equation. As for the principle by which the possible stationary states are selected, Bohr was still very far from a general formulation" indeed, he was keenly aware of the necessity of extending the investigation to configurations other than the simple ones to which he had restricted himself. The search for sufficiently general quantum conditions defining the stationary states of atomic systems was going to be a major problem in the following period of development of the theory."" (DSB).Also contained in the volume is Henry Moseley's famous paper ""The High-Frequency Spectra of the Elements"" in which he ""used the method of X-ray spectroscopy devised by Braggs to calculate variations in the wave length of the rays emitted by each element. These he was able to arrange in a series according to the nuclear charge of each element. [...] It was now possible to base the periodic table on a firm foundation, and to state with confidence that the number of elements up to uranium is limited to 92."" (PMM 407).PMM 411Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 6.
London, Taylor & Francis, 1913. 8vo. Bound in one nice contemporary half calf binding with gilt leather title-label to spine. Published in ""The London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science"", Vol. 25. No. 145-150 offered. Small repair to spine and blind stamped to lower part of title page. The Bohr papers: pp. 10-31. [Entire volume: VIII, 876 pp.+ 10 plates].
Bohr's seminal first work on nuclear physics, being the work that lays the foundation for his atomic theory (published before his ""On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules""), in which he is able to conclude ""that a hydrogen atom contains only 1 electron outside the positively charged nucleus, and that a helium atom only contains 2 electrons outside the nucleus ."" ""Bohr's 1913 paper on alpha-particles [i.e. the present], which he had begun in Manchester, and which had led him to the question of atomic structure, marks the transition to his great work, also of 1913, on that same problem. While still in Manchester, he had already begun an early sketch of those entirely new ideas."" (Pais, p. 128). The present work must be considered one of the most important to the birth of modern atomic theory.After finishing his studies in Copenhagen, Bohr went to Cambridge in order to pursue his studies on electron theory under the guidance of J.J. Thompson. Thompson, who was beginning to lose interest in the subject by now, did, however, not recognize the genious of the young Bohr, and as soon as he could, Bohr went to Manchester, where Ernest Rutherford had established a laboratory. ""There, from March to July 1912, working with utmost concentration, he [i.e. Bohr] laid the foundation for his greatest achievements in physics, the theory of the atomic constitution."" (DSB). Bohr's survey of the implications of Rutherford's atomic model had led him to attack the much harder problem which lay at the core of it, namely determining the exact nature of the relation between the atomic number and the number of electrons in the atom. ""Bohr obtained a much deeper insight into the problem by a brilliant piece of work, which he - working, as he said, ""day and night"" - completed with astonishing speed"" (DSB), that paper being the present ""On the Theory of the Decrease of Velocity of Moving electrified Particles on passing through Matter"", which thus constitutes his very first publication on the subject, published immediately after this dense period of 1912, in the Philosophical Magazine of January 1913. ""The problem was one of immediate interest for Rutherford's laboratory: in their passage through a material medium, alpha particles continually lose energy by ionizing the atoms they encounter, at a rate depending on their velocity. Their energy loss limits the depth to which the particles can penetrate into the medium, and the relation between this depth, or range, and the velocity offers a way of determining this velocity. What Bohr did was to analyze the ionizing process on the basis of the Rutherford model of the atom and thus express the rate of energy loss in terms of the velocity by a much more accurate formula than had so far been achieved-a formula, in fact, to which modern quantum mechanics adds only nonessential refinements"" (DSB). In the present work, Bohr was thus able to conclude: ""In this paper the theory of the decrease of velocity of moving electrified particles in passing through matter is given in a form, such that the rate of the decrease in the velocity depends on the frequency of vibration of the electrons in the atoms of the absorbing material."" as well as the seminal words that have been formative for the birth of the modern atomic theory: ""Adopting Prof. Rutherford's theory of the constitution of atoms, it seems that it can be concluded with great certainty, from the absorption of alpha-rays, that a hydrogen atom contains only 1 electron outside the positively charged nucleus, and that a helium atom only contains 2 electrons outside the nucleus "". Bohr continues: ""These questions and some further information about the constitution of atoms which may be got from experiments on the absorption of alpha-rays, will be discussed in more detail in a later paper."" (pp. 30-31 of the original paper) - the last sentence referring directly to his three part ""On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules"", in which he went on to present his postulates of the orbital structure of the electrons and their quantized radiation. Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 5. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 240-41. Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, pp. 117-31.
Copenhagen, Institute for Theoretical Physics, 1955. Small folio (A4). Blank wrappers, stapled under cloth back-stip. Stenciled manuscript. 48 numbered leaves with printing on rectos only. Illustrated.
One of the few scarce original stenciled copies of the ""Journal of Jocular Physics, Vol. III,"" the 1955-volume of the privately circulated amateur-comedy-journal that Bohr's students made on the occasions of Bohr's most important birthdays (beginning with his 50th in 1935), in this case his 70th. The ""Journal"" is an eclectic blend of funny and clever stories, songs, poems, aphorisms, humorous descriptions of recent developments in physics, etc., all written in an informal tone with the underlying subject being Bohr's birthday.Since 1929 most of the greatest physicists of the 20th century had been gathering around Niels Bohr for a conference in Copenhagen at the Bohr Institute. Since 1931 this conference had also included a skit prepared by the youngest of the participants, the ""Copenhagen Faust"" of 1932 being the most famous and important of them. It is this skit that later develops into the ""Journal of Jocular Physics"" which was prepared and compiled for Bohr's 50th, 60th and 70th birthdays, the first in 1935, the second in 1945, and the third (the present) in 1955. The 1955 ""Jocular Physics"" was the last of them. ""The early decades of the present century witnessed the heady development of the Quantum Theory of the atom, and during that era the roads of theoreticians of all nationalities led, not to Rome, but to Copenhagen, the home city of Niels Bohr, who was the first to formulate the correct atomic model. It became customary at the end of each spring conference at Blegdamsvej 15 (the street address of Bohr's Institute of Theoretical Physics) to produce a stunt pertaining to recent developments in physics.However Copenhagen was also the home of abundant humor. As a respite from the intensive and highly competitive efforts taking place to characterize fundamental interactions on an atomic scale, physicists took the time to develop satirical letters, articles, plays and other works."" (Gamow, Thirty Years that Shook Physics, pp. 167-68).In his Report at the Niels Bohr Archive Symposium, ""Copenhagen' and beyond: Drama meets history of science"", Yu.V. Gaponov accounts for the history of ""physical art"": ""The 1950s and 1960s were the golden age of the utmost prosperity in Physics. The atomic revolution having opened for the scientists a new world of quanta led soon to the nuclear fission discovery and to the first steps in techniques to dominate the atomic energy. The realization of national atomic programs which first took place in USA and then in Russia (USSR) and Great Britain had attracted the whole world's attention and placed Physics and the natural sciences in general in a top position. Being concerned with matters of physics became then exclusive and prestigious and physicists as individuals attracted the society's attention. They became heroes of literature, theater, movies, press. This process was observed in many advanced countries. It was also typical for the former USSR of those times, although owing to special social circumstances it had acquired some particular forms. One such form was the creation of ""Physical Art"" traditions... The birth of these traditions is commonly associated with the appearance at MSU PhysFac in 1960 of a Student Humor Festival called ""Birthday of Archimedes"" (later ""Physics Day"") along with a comic buffoonery opera ""Archimedes"" (authors - physicists and poets V. Kaner, V. Milyaev). However, MSU physicists consider the ""Physical Art"" traditions to have started earlier. Here are some remarkable milestones: In 1932 the well known ""Faust"" jocular opera and in 1935 the special issue of the ""Jocular Physics"" journal were written by some eminent physicists in connection with the 50th birthday of Niels Bohr.""The present 1955-volume contains numerous very funny contributions by physicists around Bohr, all based on physics humour, physics word-games etc. We have for instance ""A Voyage to Laplacia"" by L. Rosenfeld, a ""Confidential"" report ""Standardization of (physics) Papers"" by J. Lindhard,""Broken English"" by H.B.G. Casimir (""There exists today a universal language that is spoken and understood almost everywhere: it is Broken English. I am not referring to Pidgin English a highly formalized and restricted branch of B.E. but to the much more general language that is used by waiters in Hawai, prostitutes in Paris and ambassadors in Washington, by business-men from Buenos Aires, by scientists at international meetings and by dirty-postcard-peddlers in Greece, in short honourable people like myself all over the world..."" (p. 14), aphorisms (like: ""One Bohr can answer more questions than 10 philosophers can ask"", """"I will have to sleep on that"" the physicist said, he lay down on the floor"", etc.), ""A Remarkable ""V-event"""" by M. Sheep, ""The Heart on the other Side"" by G. Gamow (""""But father will never give his consent... He is looking for a son-in-law who can help him in his business, and eventually take it over. You can't possibly qualify for that, can you?"" ""No, I guess I can't,"" agreed Stan Situs sadly. ""I cannot possibly see how the kind of mathematics I am doing or, in fact, ANY kind of mathematics can help the production and selling of shoes...""), the poem ""The Atom that Bohr Built"", etc. The ""Journal of Jocular Physics"" is an important document portraying both one of the main physical centres of this physically important period and how one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century was viewed by his students and collaborators - as being not only brilliant in his field of research but also as a funny, likeable and sympathetic person. See also:Gino Segrè. Faust in Copenhagen. A Struggle for the Soul of Physics and the Birth of the Nuclear Age.""Pimlico, 2008.George Gamow. Thirty Years that Shook Physics. The Story of Quantum Theory. New York, 1966.
Copenhagen, Institute for Theoretical Physics, 1955. Small folio (A4). Stapled, unbound. Stenciled manuscript. Edges a bit bumped. A bit of spotting to first leaf. 48 numbered leaves with printing on rectos only. Illustrated.
One of the few scarce original stenciled copies of the ""Journal of Jocular Physics, Vol. III,"" the 1955-volume of the privately circulated amateur-comedy-journal that Bohr's students made on the occasions of Bohr's most important birthdays (beginning with his 50th in 1935), in this case his 70th. The ""Journal"" is an eclectic blend of funny and clever stories, songs, poems, aphorisms, humorous descriptions of recent developments in physics, etc., all written in an informal tone with the underlying subject being Bohr's birthday.Since 1929 most of the greatest physicists of the 20th century had been gathering around Niels Bohr for a conference in Copenhagen at the Bohr Institute. Since 1931 this conference had also included a skit prepared by the youngest of the participants, the ""Copenhagen Faust"" of 1932 being the most famous and important of them. It is this skit that later develops into the ""Journal of Jocular Physics"" which was prepared and compiled for Bohr's 50th, 60th and 70th birthdays, the first in 1935, the second in 1945, and the third (the present) in 1955. The 1955 ""Jocular Physics"" was the last of them. ""The early decades of the present century witnessed the heady development of the Quantum Theory of the atom, and during that era the roads of theoreticians of all nationalities led, not to Rome, but to Copenhagen, the home city of Niels Bohr, who was the first to formulate the correct atomic model. It became customary at the end of each spring conference at Blegdamsvej 15 (the street address of Bohr's Institute of Theoretical Physics) to produce a stunt pertaining to recent developments in physics.However Copenhagen was also the home of abundant humor. As a respite from the intensive and highly competitive efforts taking place to characterize fundamental interactions on an atomic scale, physicists took the time to develop satirical letters, articles, plays and other works."" (Gamow, Thirty Years that Shook Physics, pp. 167-68).In his Report at the Niels Bohr Archive Symposium, ""Copenhagen' and beyond: Drama meets history of science"", Yu.V. Gaponov accounts for the history of ""physical art"": ""The 1950s and 1960s were the golden age of the utmost prosperity in Physics. The atomic revolution having opened for the scientists a new world of quanta led soon to the nuclear fission discovery and to the first steps in techniques to dominate the atomic energy. The realization of national atomic programs which first took place in USA and then in Russia (USSR) and Great Britain had attracted the whole world's attention and placed Physics and the natural sciences in general in a top position. Being concerned with matters of physics became then exclusive and prestigious and physicists as individuals attracted the society's attention. They became heroes of literature, theater, movies, press. This process was observed in many advanced countries. It was also typical for the former USSR of those times, although owing to special social circumstances it had acquired some particular forms. One such form was the creation of ""Physical Art"" traditions... The birth of these traditions is commonly associated with the appearance at MSU PhysFac in 1960 of a Student Humor Festival called ""Birthday of Archimedes"" (later ""Physics Day"") along with a comic buffoonery opera ""Archimedes"" (authors - physicists and poets V. Kaner, V. Milyaev). However, MSU physicists consider the ""Physical Art"" traditions to have started earlier. Here are some remarkable milestones: In 1932 the well known ""Faust"" jocular opera and in 1935 the special issue of the ""Jocular Physics"" journal were written by some eminent physicists in connection with the 50th birthday of Niels Bohr.""The present 1955-volume contains numerous very funny contributions by physicists around Bohr, all based on physics humour, physics word-games etc. We have for instance ""A Voyage to Laplacia"" by L. Rosenfeld, a ""Confidential"" report ""Standardization of (physics) Papers"" by J. Lindhard,""Broken English"" by H.B.G. Casimir (""There exists today a universal language that is spoken and understood almost everywhere: it is Broken English. I am not referring to Pidgin English a highly formalized and restricted branch of B.E. but to the much more general language that is used by waiters in Hawai, prostitutes in Paris and ambassadors in Washington, by business-men from Buenos Aires, by scientists at international meetings and by dirty-postcard-peddlers in Greece, in short honourable people like myself all over the world..."" (p. 14), aphorisms (like: ""One Bohr can answer more questions than 10 philosophers can ask"", """"I will have to sleep on that"" the physicist said, he lay down on the floor"", etc.), ""A Remarkable ""V-event"""" by M. Sheep, ""The Heart on the other Side"" by G. Gamow (""""But father will never give his consent... He is looking for a son-in-law who can help him in his business, and eventually take it over. You can't possibly qualify for that, can you?"" ""No, I guess I can't,"" agreed Stan Situs sadly. ""I cannot possibly see how the kind of mathematics I am doing or, in fact, ANY kind of mathematics can help the production and selling of shoes...""), the poem ""The Atom that Bohr Built"", etc. The ""Journal of Jocular Physics"" is an important document portraying both one of the main physical centres of this physically important period and how one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century was viewed by his students and collaborators - as being not only brilliant in his field of research but also as a funny, likeable and sympathetic person. See also:Gino Segrè. Faust in Copenhagen. A Struggle for the Soul of Physics and the Birth of the Nuclear Age.""Pimlico, 2008.George Gamow. Thirty Years that Shook Physics. The Story of Quantum Theory. New York, 1966.
(London, Harrison & Sons, 1909). Large 4to. Original printed wrappers" wrappers loose and with lack of paper, mostly to back wrapper, which is quite chipped and nicked, with tears, and lacking a bigger part of the upper right corner. Front wrapper merely lacking a few smaller pieces at the top, not affecting the presentation inscription. Pp. 281-317.
Extremely scarce first edition, off-print issue with presentation-inscription, of Bohr's first published paper, constituting his only ever work in experimental physics. ""His first research project, a precision measurement of the surface tension of water by the observation of a regularly vibrating jet, was completed in 1906, when he was still a student, and it won him the gold medal from the Academy of Sciences. It is a mature piece of work, remarkable for the care and thoroughness with which both the experimental and theoretical parts of the problem were handled."" (DSB).The work is inscribed to renowned Danish physicist and meteorologist Dan la Cour (1876-1942), son of the great Poul la Cour (1846-1908), who is considered the ""Danish Edison"". The inscription reads as thus: ""Hr. Docent D. la Cour/ ærbødigst/ fra/ Forfatteren."" [In Danish, i.e.: ""Mr. Assistant Professor D. la Cour/ with great respect / from/ the author.""].Dan la Cour was the assistant of Niels Bohr's father, Christian Bohr, and a well known scientist. From 1903, he was head of the department of the Meteorological Institute, and from 1923 leader thereof. From 1908 he was Associate Professor at the Polytechnic College. His original scientific works are highly respected, as are his original apparati for measuring earth magnetism which are considered highly valuable. ""His original intelligence, which in many ways resemble that of his father, also bore fruit in his patenting of various inventions: the ""Pyknoprobe"", developed to quickly determine the different layers of the sea"" a use of termite in quickly heating food and drinks out in the open under unfavourable weather conditions."" (From the Danish Encyclopaedia - own translation). He wrote a number of important and esteemed works and was member of the Danish Scientific Academy as well as many prominent international scientific commissions of meteorology and geophysics (i.e. president of the International Geodetical and Geophysical Union). He was also honorary Doctor at the George Washington University. This Bohr's fist paper grew out of a work which Bohr did in 1906, and for which he won a gold medal from the Academy of Sciences. The subject was to experimentally investigate a method, proposed by Lord Rayleigh, for measuring the surface tension of water by the observation of a regularly vibrating jet. ""Bohr [...] included in his work essential improvements on Rayleigh's theory by taking into account the influence of the liquid's viscosity and of the ambient air, and by extending the earlier theory from infinitesimal to arbitrary large vibration amplitudes. In order to execute his experiments he had first of all to cope with one complication. The university had no physics laboratory."" (Pais, p. 101). Bohr thus constructed many of the instruments himself using his father's laboratory. """"I did the experiments completely alone alone in the physiological laboratory... it was a great amount of work"", which was technically demanding."" (Pais, p. 102). In spite of being Bohr's only ever work in experimental physics, it documents his deep understanding of the methods of experimentalists.""On 23 February 1907 the Academy notified him that he had won its gold medal. In 1908 he submitted a modified version to the Royal Society in London. It was his first and last paper on experiments he himself performed. His second publication was his last to deal with surface tension of liquids"" it was purely theoretical. Both papers were favorably referred to in later literature.The manuscript of the prize essay, never published in its original form, is preserved in the Bohr Archives. It is handwritten, by Harald Bohr [i.e. his brother]."" (Pais, p. 102), Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 1. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 239. Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, pp. 101-02.
Shanghai, Huadong shifan daxue chubanshe, 1986 - 2001. 8vo. 10 volumes, all in publisher's uniform full cloth bindings with gilt lettering to spines and front boards. All volumes with presentation inscription from the translator to Niels Bohr's son, Ernest Bohr: ""To Mr. Ernest Bohr with / highest respect from / GeGe"". A fine and clean set of the first 10 volumes of Niels Bohr Collected Works.
First Chinese, and overall, translation of 'Niels Bohr Collected Works' with dedication inscription from the translator ot Bohr's son Ernest Bohr. Translator Prof. Ge Ge found Bohr’s personality and mode of thinking in harmony with traditional Chinese culture, which may be part of the explanation for his lifelong dedication to Niels Bohr and his work, and his great effort to translate and publish the only non-English edition of the Niels Bohr Collected Works in existence today. The first volume in English had appeared in 1972, and Ge Ge was able to publish a Chinese translation in 1986, fourteen years later.Ge Ge’s enthusiasm not only led to the Collected Works being published with impressive promptness in China, but no doubt provided additional motivation for the Director of the Niels Bohr Archive to prepare the volumes faster. In this way, Ge Ge had an influence even on the publication of the original edition. In 2001 Ge Ge received the prestigeousDanish Order of the Dannebrog “for hiscontribution to increasing the Chinese understanding of Danish science and promoting the Denmark-China scientific cooperation. He was in fact able to translate all the volumes of the Collected Works, the last volume of which was published in English in 2006. It testifies to Ge Ge’s dedication that he enthusiastically went on with the work in spite of having lost his eyesight" he died the following year. The volumes contain the following: Vol. 1: Early Work (1905-1911) Vol. 2: Work on Atomic Physics (1912-1917)Vol. 3: The Correspondence Principle (1918-1923) Vol. 4: The Periodic System (1920-1923)Vol. 5: The Emergence of Quantum Mechanics (mainly 1924-1926) Vol. 6: Foundations of Quantum Physics I (1926-1932) Vol. 7: Foundations of Quantum Physics II (1933-1958) Vol. 8: The Penetration of Charged Particles through Matter (1912-1954)Vol. 9: Nuclear Physics (1929-1952) Vol. 10: Complementarity beyond Physics (1928-1962)
London, Taylor & Francis, 1913. 8vo. Bound together in one very nice recent marbled paper binding with gilt leather title-label to spine. Published in ""The London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science"", Vol. 26: July 1913, No. 151 (pp. 1-232 + 6 plates) - September 1913, No 153 (pp. 381-548) - November 1913, No 155 (pp. 802-936 + 6 plates). (The 3 whole numbers of the journal offered). The Bohr papers: pp. 1-25" pp. 476-502 pp.857-875.
First edition of Bohr's seminal main work, which constitutes the departure from classical theories" by incorporating Planck's quantum postulate it became possible to calculate the wavelength of the hydrogen emission and thus to explain the regularity of the Balmer-lines.In his previous paper (""On the Theory of Decrease of Velocity of Moving Electrified Particles on passing through Matter"") Bohr had adopted Rutherford's nuclear model of the atom, and had become convinced that it was the peripherical electrons that determined the chemical properties of an element, whereas the nucleus determine the radioactive properties. However, Rutherford's model had an apparent explanatory problem: Why were the negatively charged electrons held away from the positive nucleus? In his doctorial dissertation on the electron theory of metals, Bohr had clarified the limitations of this theory, in particular its ability to explain magnetic properties, and he had shown how this arose from the classical nature of some of its foundations. Bohr strongly expected that the key to solving this problem was to be found in some way of introducing Planck's law of quantum action.In the beginning of 1913 Bohr heard about Rydberg's remarkable discovery in spectroscopy. Rydberg's formula could represent the frequencies of the lines of the hydrogen spectrum in the simplest form in terms of two integers. As soon as Bohr saw this formula, he immediately recognized that it gave him the missing clue to the correct way to introduce Planck's law of quantum of action into the description of the atomic systems. The rest of the academic year was spent reconstructing the whole theory upon the new foundation and expounding it in a large treatise, which was immediately published as these three papers in the 'Philosophical Magazine'. It was in these papers that Bohr first gave his postulates of the orbital structure of the electrons and their quantized radiation.Bohr's atomic theory inaugurated two of the most adventurous decades in the history of science. In 1922 Bohr was awarded the Nobel Prize ""for his services in the investigation of the structure of atoms and of the radiation emanating from them"".Bohr introduced the following postulates: 1. An electron can revolve about its nucleus only in certain special circular orbits. 2. The ordinary electron revolves about its nucleus in an invariable orbit, without radiating or absorbing energy. 3. Radiation takes place when and only when the electron falls from an orbit with greater energy to one of less energy.Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 6. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 240-41. Printing and the Mind of Man: 411.
Copenhagen, Bianco Lunos, 1918. 4to. Both parts uncut and in the original printed wrappers. Wrappers detached and with small nicks and tears to extremities. Internally fine and clean. Part I unopened. 36 pp. + pp. (37) - 100.
First editions, author's off-prints (with ""Separate Copy"" printed to front wrappers), presentation-copies, of the first two parts of Bohr's seminal work ""On the Quantum Theory of the Line-Spectra"" (which appeared in three parts and which was never finished, the third part of which, published 4 years later, is almost never found in presentation-sets), in which Bohr gave his first clear presentation of his groundbreaking ""correspondence principle"": ""Which would play a pivotal role in the later development of atomic theory and its transformation into quantum mechanics."" (Kragh, Quantum Generations, p. 56). It eventually became a cornerstone in the quantum mechanics formulated by Heisenberg and Schrödinger. ""There was rarely in the history of physics a comprehensive theory which owed so much to one principle as quantum mechanics owed to Bohr's correspondence principle"" (Jammer 1966, p. 118). The evolution of quantum theory is divided into two distinct periods"" from 1900 to 1925, usually referred to as the period with the old quantum theory still grounded in classical physics and the second period with quantum mechanics from 1925 onwards. The general rules of quantum mechanics are very successful in describing objects on an atomic level. But macroscopic systems are accurately described by classical theories like classical mechanics and classical electrodynamics. If quantum mechanics were to be applicable to macroscopic objects, there must be some limit in which quantum mechanics reduces to classical mechanics. Bohr's correspondence principle demands that classical physics and quantum physics give the same answer when the systems become large. ""A major tool he developed for dealing with quantum problem, [...], was the correspondence principle, which establishes links between predictions of the classical theory and expectations for the quantum theory."" (Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, p. 20.). In this sense, the correspondence principle is not only an exceedingly important methodological principle, it also represents the transition to quantum mechanics and modern physics in general and it became the cornerstone of Bohr's philosophical interpretation of quantum mechanics which later would be closely tied to his thesis of complementarity and to the Copenhagen interpretation. Another version of the correspondence principle lives on in philosophical literature where it has taken form as a more general concept representing a development of new scientific theories.""By 1918 Bohr had visualized, at least in outline, the whole theory of atomic phenomena. ... He of course realized that he was still very far from a logically consistent framework wide enough to incorporate both the quantum postulates and those aspects of classical mechanics and electrodynamics that seemed to retain some validity. Nevertheless, he at once started writing up a synthetic exposition of his arguments and of all the evidence upon which they could have any bearing" in testing how well he could summarize what was known, he found occasion to check the soundness of his ideas and to improve their formulation. In the present case, however, he could hardly keep pace with the growth of the subject the paper he had in mind at the beginning developed into a four-part treatise, 'On the Theory of Line Spectra', publication of which dragged over four years without being completed" the first three parts appeared between 1918 and 1922 [of which the two first from 1918 are offered here], and the fourth, unfortunately, was never published. Thus, the full impact of Bohr's view remained confined to the small but brilliant circle of his disciples, who indeed managed better than their master to make them more widely known by the prompter publication of their own results"" (D.S.B. II: 246-47).Inscribed to ""Hr. Docent D. la Cour/ Venskabeligst/ fra/ Forfatteren"" on both front wrappers. The renowned Danish physicist and meteorologist Dan la Cour (1876-1942), was the son of the great Poul la Cour (1846-1908), who is considered the ""Danish Edison"". Dan la Cour was the assistant of Niels Bohr's father, Christian Bohr, and a well known scientist. From 1903, he was head of the department of the Meteorological Institute, and from 1923 leader thereof. From 1908 he was Associate Professor at the Polytechnic College. His original scientific works are highly respected, as are his original apparati for measuring earth magnetism which are considered highly valuable. ""His original intelligence, which in many ways resemble that of his father, also bore fruit in his patenting of various inventions: the ""Pyknoprobe"", developed to quickly determine the different layers of the sea"" a use of termite in quickly heating food and drinks out in the open under unfavourable weather conditions."" (From the Danish Encyclopaedia - own translation). He wrote a number of important and esteemed works and was member of the Danish Scientific Academy as well as many prominent international scientific commissions of meteorology and geophysics (i.e. president of the International Geodetical and Geophysical Union). He was also honorary Doctor at the George Washington University. Rosenfeld, Bohr-Bibliography, 15.
London, Harrison & Sons, 1909 Large4to. Original printed wrappers. Offprint from: ""Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series A, Vol. 209. pp. 281-317."" With cloth backstrip and I small nick to upper and lower corner of front wrapper. A fine and clean copy. Pp. 281-317.
Scarce first edition, off-print issue, of Bohr's first published paper, constituting his only ever work in experimental physics. ""His first research project, a precision measurement of the surface tension of water by the observation of a regularly vibrating jet, was completed in 1906, when he was still a student, and it won him the gold medal from the Academy of Sciences. It is a mature piece of work, remarkable for the care and thoroughness with which both the experimental and theoretical parts of the problem were handled."" (DSB).This Bohr's fist paper grew out of a work which Bohr did in 1906, and for which he won a gold medal from the Academy of Sciences. The subject was to experimentally investigate a method, proposed by Lord Rayleigh, for measuring the surface tension of water by the observation of a regularly vibrating jet. ""Bohr [...] included in his work essential improvements on Rayleigh's theory by taking into account the influence of the liquid's viscosity and of the ambient air, and by extending the earlier theory from infinitesimal to arbitrary large vibration amplitudes. In order to execute his experiments he had first of all to cope with one complication. The university had no physics laboratory."" (Pais, p. 101). Bohr thus constructed many of the instruments himself using his father's laboratory. """"I did the experiments completely alone alone in the physiological laboratory... it was a great amount of work"", which was technically demanding."" (Pais, p. 102). In spite of being Bohr's only ever work in experimental physics, it documents his deep understanding of the methods of experimentalists.""On 23 February 1907 the Academy notified him that he had won its gold medal. In 1908 he submitted a modified version to the Royal Society in London. It was his first and last paper on experiments he himself performed. His second publication was his last to deal with surface tension of liquids"" it was purely theoretical. Both papers were favorably referred to in later literature.The manuscript of the prize essay, never published in its original form, is preserved in the Bohr Archives. It is handwritten, by Harald Bohr [i.e. his brother]."" (Pais, p. 102), Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 1. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 239. Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, pp. 101-02.
London, Macmillan and Co., 1928. Royal8vo. In recent full blue cloth with gilt lettering to spine. Extracted from ""Nature"", January - June, 1928, Vol. 121. Entire April 14-issue offered. Fine and clean. [Bohr:] Pp. 580-90. [Entire issue:] Pp. 561-608.
First edition of Bohr's exceedingly influential statement of his 'complementarity' principle, the basis of what became known as the 'Copenhagen interpretation' of quantum mechanics. In the paper he coined the term 'complementarity' and thereby created an entire new fundamental principle of quantum mechanics.""Immediately after Heisenberg's work on uncertainty relations, Bohr presented his concept of complementarity at a conference a Lake Como in Italy. Bohr's lecture marked the first attempt to provide a genuine philosophical underpinning to the new advances in physics. The uncertainty relations had provided Bohr a concrete measure of the consequences of the wave-particle duality and thereby a physics-based justification for the ideas he was working on. Bohr had already embraced the wave-particle duality underlying quantum theory and he presented the concept of complementarity as the fundamental feature of a new conceptual framework broad enough to include it"" (Paul McEvoy, Niels Bohr). ""For Bohr, complementarity was an almost religious belief that the paradoxes of the quantum world must be accepted as fundamental, not to be 'solved' or trivialized by attempts to find out 'what's really going on down there.' Bohr used the word in an unusual way: the 'complementarity' of waves and particles, for example (or of position and momentum), meant that when one existed fully, its complement did not exist at all"" (Louisa Gilder, The Age of Entanglement). ""The lecture was published in Nature in 1928 in a revised form It sparked significant debate in the years that followed and solidified the boundaries between those who accepted Bohr's view of the consequences of quantum theory and those who were seeking a more 'realistic' microscopic theory or a more realistic interpretation of quantum theory itself"" (McEvoy, P. 70).The paper was published almost simultaneously in English, Danish, English, French and German, the present English publication being the first.
Copenhagen, Bianco Lunos, 1918. 4to. Original printed wrappers. Lower right corner of front wrapper bent. Small closed tear to front wrapper. Spine strip renewed. Otherwise fine and clean throughtout.
First printing of the second part of Bohr's seminal work ""On the Quantum Theory of the Line-Spectra"" (which appeared in three parts and which was never finished), author's off-print (with ""Separate copy"" printed on front wrapper), presentation-copy, inscribed by Bohr: ""Hr. Professor K. Prytz / med venlig Hilsen / fra Forfatteren"".""By 1918 Bohr had visualized, at least in outline, the whole theory of atomic phenomena. ... He of course realized that he was still very far from a logically consistent framework wide enough to incorporate both the quantum postulates and those aspects of classical mechanics and electrodynamics that seemed to retain some validity. Nevertheless, he at once started writing up a synthetic exposition of his arguments and of all the evidence upon which they could have any bearing" in testing how well he could summarize what was known, he found occasion to check the soundness of his ideas and to improve their formulation. In the present case, however, he could hardly keep pace with the growth of the subject the paper he had in mind at the beginning developed into a four-part treatise, 'On the Theory of Line Spectra', publication of which dragged over four years without being completed" the first three parts appeared between 1918 and 1922 [of which the second from 1918 is offered here], and the fourth, unfortunately, was never published. Thus, the full impact of Bohr's view remained confined to the small but brilliant circle of his disciples, who indeed managed better than their master to make them more widely known by the prompter publication of their own results"" (D.S.B. 2: 246-47).The present second part deals with the hydrogen spectrum, whereas the first part dealt with the general theory, and the third with the spectra of elements of higher atomic structure. Peter Kristian Prytz (1851-1929), to whom the work is inscribed, was an important physicist of the generation before Bohr. He did immense work to better the conditions of the teaching of physics at the Polytechnic Institute in Copenhagen, where Bohr studied for many years and where he later became a teacher. Prytz introduced the teaching of experimental physics here and fought for more space, more apparatus, more money for teaching assistance and more time for teaching. Thus, he played a great role in the physics-environment in Copenhagen both during Bohr's years as a student and as a teacher.Most importantly, it was Prytz who (in 1907) attracted the necessary money for the institute which enabled him to create the physical laboratory that constituted the foundation of Danish experimental physics, the field of which Bohr became professor in 1916 (till 1920 - the years during which he was working on the ""On the Quantum Theory of the Line Spectra"").Rosenfeld, Bohr-Bibliography, 15.
Copenhagen, Bianco Lunas, 1929. Royal 8vo. Original printed wrappers. Torn at top of front wrapper, no loss. Small loss to capitals. Tear to top of title-page, causing loss of ab. 1x1 cm, but not to the inscription, nor to lettering. The tear goes through the first part of the inscription, but there is no loss of any of it. 76 pp.
First edition thus, of the three articles that together constitute one of the most important contributions to modern Danish culture. Inscribed by Bohr (signed ""the author"") on the title-page: ""Hr. Direktør D. la Cour/ med venlig Hilsen / fra Forfatteren"". The work constitutes the first Danish translations of the present three articles: ""Atomic Theory and Mechanics"" (1925, Rosenfeld 33), ""The Quantum Postulate and the Recent Development of Atomic Theory"" (1928, Rosenfeld 37), and ""Wirkungsquantum und Naturbeschreibung"", (1929, Rosenfeld 39), here published together for the first time under the title ""Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature"" and with an introductory overview. The present collection of articles, translated into Danish, Bohr's mother tongue, constitutes an important insight into Bohr's thought and fundamental views on atomic theory and nature. The work, as it is here, has been elected as the Bohr-entry in the official list of Danish canonic literature, which collects the most important literary contributions to Danish culture. This is the only Bohr-item on the list. (see: http://www.kanonudvalget.dk). The work is inscribed to renowned Danish physicist and meteorologist Dan la Cour (1876-1942), son of the great Poul la Cour (1846-1908), who is considered the ""Danish Edison"". Dan la Cour was the assistant of Niels Bohr's father, Christian Bohr, and a well known scientist. From 1903, he was head of the department of the Meteorological Institute, and from 1923 leader thereof. From 1908 he was Associate Professor at the Polytechnic College. His original scientific works are highly respected, as are his original apparati for measuring earth magnetism which are considered highly valuable. ""His original intelligence, which in many ways resemble that of his father, also bore fruit in his patenting of various inventions: the ""Pyknoprobe"", developed to quickly determine the different layers of the sea"" a use of termite in quickly heating food and drinks out in the open under unfavourable weather conditions."" (From the Danish Encyclopaedia - own translation). He wrote a number of important and esteemed works and was member of the Danish Scientific Academy as well as many prominent international scientific commissions of meteorology and geophysics (i.e. president of the International Geodetical and Geophysical Union). He was also honorary Doctor at the George Washington University. Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 40.
Akademisk Forlag Malicorne sur Sarthe, 72, Pays de la Loire, France 1979 Book condition, Etat : Bon paperback, editor's blue wrappers, illustrated by a black and white photography of the Institute In-8 1 vol. - 175 pages
several black and white photographies 1st English paperback, 1979 Contents, Chapitres : L'Institut Niels-Bohr a été fondé en 1921, sous l'impulsion du physicien danois Niels Bohr, prix Nobel de physique en 1922. À l'occasion du 80e anniversaire de Niels Bohr, le 7 octobre 1965, l'institut, qui s'appelait alors Institut de physique théorique de l'université de Copenhague, prit officiellement le nom d'Institut Niels-Bohr. - Durant les décennies 1920 et 1930, l'Institut était le centre mondial pour le développement des nouvelles disciplines qu'étaient alors la physique nucléaire et la physique quantique. Des physiciens du monde entier s'y rendaient alors pour rencontrer Niels Bohr et discuter de nouvelles théories. L'École de Copenhague d'interprétation de la mécanique quantique doit son nom au travail effectué alors à l'institut. (source : Wikipedia) few foxings on the wrappers which remains in very good condition, inside is near fine, no markings, minor folding tracks on the front-part of the wrappers, it remains a very good copy
Presses Universitaires de France - P.U.F. et Journal de Physique , Recueil de Conférences-Rapports de Documentation sur la Physique Malicorne sur Sarthe, 72, Pays de la Loire, France 1922 Book condition, Etat : Bon relié, cartonnage éditeur imprimé, demi-toile grise grand In-8 1 vol. - 181 pages
44 figures dans le texte en noir et blanc 1ere édition, 1922 Contents, Chapitres : Le rayonnement thermique, définitions générales, lois de Kirchhoff et de Stefan - Radiation isotherme et énergie d'un résonateur, loi de Wien - Structure des atomes et des raies spectrales d'après les idées de Niels Bohr - Applications de la théorie des quanta - Essais d'extension de la théorie, principes de sélection et de correspondance - Applications des calculs de probabilité à l'atome de Bohr - La formule de Boltzmann et les invariants adiabatiques - Notes annexes : Formules relatives au milieu dispersif - Dilatation adiabatique du rayonnement - Léon Nicolas Brillouin, né le 7 août 1889 à Sèvres et mort le 4 octobre 1969 à New York, est un physicien franco-américain, essentiellement connu pour ses travaux en mécanique quantique et en physique du solide. Il a notamment travaillé sur la théorie des ondes et la théorie de l'information. - En avril 1926, Léon Brillouin synthétisait dans le renommé Journal de physique près de dix articles publiés par des physiciens étrangers comme Werner Heisenberg, Max Born ou Pascual Jordan. Il a ainsi joué un rôle important dans lintroduction en France de la mécanique quantique. En 1927, il fut avec Marie Curie, Louis de Broglie, Émile Henriot et Paul Langevin l'un des cinq Français invités au cinquième congrès Solvay, qui marqua la naissance officielle de la mécanique quantique. - La première contribution importante de Bohr à la physique atomique consiste en une refonte du modèle de latome à partir des années 1912-1913. Le modèle en vigueur en 1911 était celui dErnest Rutherford, dans lequel les électrons gravitaient autour du noyau central à la façon des planètes autour du Soleil6. Cette conception présentait un défaut majeur : elle n'était pas stable. En effet, selon les lois de l'électromagnétisme, toute particule en mouvement accéléré émet un rayonnement et perd ainsi de l'énergie. En tournant autour du noyau, les électrons devraient donc perdre leur énergie et finir par s'effondrer sur le noyau. Pour remédier à ce problème, Bohr imagine que les électrons circulent sur des orbites définies par leur niveau d'énergie. Ces orbites sont stables et de rayon bien déterminé. La nouveauté profonde de l'atome de Bohr consiste alors à ne plus attribuer aux électrons des valeurs continues mais des valeurs discrètes. (source : Wikipedia) cartonnage très propre, dos à peine jauni, intérieur frais et propre, papier à peine jauni, cela reste un bon exemplaire de cette étude magistrale de Léon Brillouin qui fut l'un des principaux introducteurs de la théorie des Quanta en France - complet en 1 volume
Presses Universitaires de France - P.U.F. et Journal de Physique , Recueil de Conférences-Rapports de Documentation sur la Physique Malicorne sur Sarthe, 72, Pays de la Loire, France 1922 Book condition, Etat : Bon relié, cartonnage éditeur imprimé, demi-toile grise grand In-8 1 vol. - 181 pages
44 figures dans le texte en noir et blanc 1ere édition, 1922 Contents, Chapitres : Le rayonnement thermique, définitions générales, lois de Kirchhoff et de Stefan - Radiation isotherme et énergie d'un résonateur, loi de Wien - Structure des atomes et des raies spectrales d'après les idées de Niels Bohr - Applications de la théorie des quanta - Essais d'extension de la théorie, principes de sélection et de correspondance - Applications des calculs de probabilité à l'atome de Bohr - La formule de Boltzmann et les invariants adiabatiques - Notes annexes : Formules relatives au milieu dispersif - Dilatation adiabatique du rayonnement - Léon Nicolas Brillouin, né le 7 août 1889 à Sèvres et mort le 4 octobre 1969 à New York, est un physicien franco-américain, essentiellement connu pour ses travaux en mécanique quantique et en physique du solide. Il a notamment travaillé sur la théorie des ondes et la théorie de l'information. - En avril 1926, Léon Brillouin synthétisait dans le renommé Journal de physique près de dix articles publiés par des physiciens étrangers comme Werner Heisenberg, Max Born ou Pascual Jordan. Il a ainsi joué un rôle important dans lintroduction en France de la mécanique quantique. En 1927, il fut avec Marie Curie, Louis de Broglie, Émile Henriot et Paul Langevin l'un des cinq Français invités au cinquième congrès Solvay, qui marqua la naissance officielle de la mécanique quantique. - La première contribution importante de Bohr à la physique atomique consiste en une refonte du modèle de latome à partir des années 1912-1913. Le modèle en vigueur en 1911 était celui dErnest Rutherford, dans lequel les électrons gravitaient autour du noyau central à la façon des planètes autour du Soleil6. Cette conception présentait un défaut majeur : elle n'était pas stable. En effet, selon les lois de l'électromagnétisme, toute particule en mouvement accéléré émet un rayonnement et perd ainsi de l'énergie. En tournant autour du noyau, les électrons devraient donc perdre leur énergie et finir par s'effondrer sur le noyau. Pour remédier à ce problème, Bohr imagine que les électrons circulent sur des orbites définies par leur niveau d'énergie. Ces orbites sont stables et de rayon bien déterminé. La nouveauté profonde de l'atome de Bohr consiste alors à ne plus attribuer aux électrons des valeurs continues mais des valeurs discrètes. (source : Wikipedia) cartonnage très propre, dos à peine jauni, 2 étiquettes aux extrémités du dos, coin supérieur droit à peine corné sans gravité, intérieur très propre, mais quelques cachets d'une entreprise
[London, Taylor & Francis], 1913. 8vo. Original printed wrappers. Excellent, very fresh copy, with only a two small marginal tears to front wrapper, no loss. Spine and cords completely fresh and fully intact. Pp. (1) +506-525.
Scarce first edition, off-print issue with presentation-inscription, of Bohr's first paper on the Stark-effect, being the seminal paper in which Bohr for the first time applies his theory to electric effect and expresses his widening interest in quantum theory. The work is inscribed to the famous Danish physicist ""Hr. Mag. scient. A.W. Marke/ med venlig Hilsen/ fra Forfatteren"" (""Mr. Master of Sciences A.W. Marke/ with kind regards/ from the author""). Axel Waldbuhm Marke (1883 - 1942) was professor of Physics in Copenhagen. His scientific works were originally centred around magnetic investigations, for which he was trained by P. Weiss in Zürich, in 1914. Due to WWI, he had to return, however, and during the difficult journey back, he lost all of his records. In 1916 he published an important work on the thermomagnetic qualities of water, and he has written a number of highly praised text books on physics, optics, meteorology, and climatology. He was renowned for his great skills in popularizing difficult scientific results and was famous for his lectures. The Stark-effect (the shifting and splitting of spectral lines of atoms and molecules due to presence of an external static electric field) is named after Johannes Stark, who discovered it in 1913. Although Stark shortly after having discovered it became and ally of Nazi Germany and rejected the developments of modern physics, his discovery became of the utmost importance to the development of quantum theory.""Once again we must go back to November 1913. On the 20th of that month Stark announced to the Prussian Academy of Sciences an important new discovery: when atomic hydrogen is exposed to a static electric field its spectral lines split, the amount of splitting being proportional to the field strength. (the linear Stak effect). After Rutherford read this news in ""Nature"", he at once wrote Bohr: ""I think it is rather up to you at the present to write something on... electric effects.""We now encounter for the first time the widening interest in quantum theory [...] Even before Bohr sat down to work on the Stark effect, Warburg from Berlin published an article in which the Bohr theory is applied to this new phenomenon. Bohr's own paper [i.e. the present] on the subject appeared in March 1914. The next year he returned to the same topic."" (Pais, Niels Bohr's Times, p. 182). Rosenfeld: No. 10.
"FEYNMAN, R. P. (+) N. BOHR (+) J. A. WHEELER (+) J. R. OPPENHEIMER (+) H. SNYDER.
Reference : 46900
(1939)
[Lancaster], American Institute of Physics, 1939. Royal8vo. Bound in contemporary full red cloth with gilt lettering to spine. Entire volume of ""The Physical Review"", Volume 56, Second Series, July 1 - December 15, 1939. ""Development Department"" in small gilt lettering to lower part of spine. A very fine and clean copy. [Feynman:] Pp. 340-43. [Bohr & Wheeler:] Pp. 426-50. [Oppenheimer & Snyder:] Pp. 455-59. [Entire volume: X, 1264 pp.].
First printing of three landmark papers, all of seminal importance in history of physics: Feynman's undergraduate thesis at MIT, the intricacies of the fission process, the groundwork for atomic and hydrogen bombs and the forgotten birth of black holes: The first theoretical description of a black hole, the production of a singularity when a sufficiently large neutron star collapses.First printing of ""FORCES IN MOLECULES"" - know known as Feynman-Hellmann theorem - is Feynman's undergraduate thesis at MIT, published when he was just twenty-one, which helped to establish his name in the world of physics. ""This work treated the problem of molecular forces from a thoroughly quantum-mechanical point of view, arriving at a simple means of calculating the energy of a molecular system that continues to guide quantum chemists."" (DSB). ""As Feynman conceived the structure of molecules, forces were the natural ingredients. He saw springlike bonds with varying stiffness, atoms attracting and repelling one another. The usual energy-accounting methods seemed secondhand and euphemistic: [He demonstrated that] the force on an atom's nucleus is no more or less than the electrical force from the surrounding field of charged electrons-the electrostatic force. Once the distribution of charge has been calculated quantum mechanically, then from that point forward quantum mechanics disappears from the picture. The problem becomes classical"" the nuclei can be treated as static points of mass and charge. Feynman's approach applies to all chemical bonds"" (Gleick, The Life and Science of Richard Feynman, P. 54).Oppenheimer and Snyder's ""ON CONTINUED GRAVITATIONAL CONTRACTION"" constitutes the very first theoretical prediction of a singularity when a sufficiently large neutron star collapses. This phenomenon was later to be coined as a black hole. ""Had J. Robert Oppenheimer not led the US effort to build the atomic bomb, he might still have been remembered for figuring out how a black hole could form."" (American Physical Society). Many historians of physics describe this paper as the forgotten birth of black holes. ""Oppenheimer and his graduate student George Volkoff presented the first analysis of the formation of a neutron star in a 1939 Physical Review paper titled, ""On Massive Neutron Stars"". Oppenheimer wondered what would happen to a very massive neutron star. The Schwartzschild analysis of General Relativity has a theoretical limit, called the ""Schwartzschild limit"", when the ratio of mass-to-radius of a star is 236,000 times greater than the ratio for our sun. When this limit is exceeded, the Schwartzschild analysis does not yield a solution. Oppenheimer believed that a neutron star could have sufficient mass to exceed this limit. What would happen to it? Oppenheimer and his graduate student Hartland Snyder applied General Relativity theory to a star with sufficient mass and density to exceed the Schwartzschild limit. The Schwartzschild analysis assumed that the size of the star stays constant with time. Oppenheimer and Snyder found that they could achieve a real solution from General Relativity when the Schwartzschild limit is exceeded by assuming that the diameter of the star decreases with time. They presented their analysis in a 1939 Physical Review paper, titled, ""On Continual Gravitational Contraction,"" which concluded with: ""When all thermonuclear sources of energy are exhausted, a sufficiently heavy star will collapse. Unless fission due to rotation, the radiation of mass, or the blowing off of mass by radiation, reduce the star's mass to the order of that of the sun, this contraction will continue indefinitely."" This analysis concluded that when the Schwartzschild limit is exceeded, the star must collapse indefinitely until it reaches a singularity having an infinite density of matter"" (Bjornson, Singularity Predictions of General Relativity, P. 4).The Chandrasekhar / Eddington controvery in the mid 30ies did discuss the fate of neutron stars but the first thoroughly theoretical desciption was first published here. ""THE MECHANISM OF NUCLEAR FISSION"" is the first fully worked out theory of nuclear fission, which laid the groundwork for atomic and hydrogen bombs.""Wheeler's technical mastery of physics is best seen in the classic paper of Bohr and Wheeler. Bohr and Wheeler wrote the paper in Princeton, where Bohr was visiting in the spring of 1939, a few months after the discovery of fission. The paper is a masterpiece of clear thinking and lucid writing. It reveals, at the center of the mystery of fission, a tiny world where everything can be calculated and everything understood. The tiny world is a nucleus of uranium 236, formed when a neutron is freshly captured by a nucleus of uranium 235. The uranium 236 nucleus sits precisely on the border between classical and quantum physics. Seen from the classical point of view, it is a liquid drop composed of a positively charged fluid. The electrostatic force that is trying to split it apart is balanced by the nuclear surface tension that is holding it together. The energy supplied by the captured neutron causes the drop to oscillate in various normal modes that can be calculated classically. Seen from the quantum point of view, the nucleus is a superposition of a variety of quantum states leading to different final outcomes. The final outcome may be a uranium 235 nucleus with a re-emitted neutron, or a uranium 236 nucleus with an emitted gamma-ray, or a pair of fission-fragment nuclei with one or more free neutrons. Bohr and Wheeler calculate the cross-section for fission of uranium 235 by a slow neutron and get the right answer within a factor of two. Their calculation is a marvelous demonstration of the power of classical mechanics and quantum mechanics working together. By studying this process in detail, they show how the complementary views provided by classical and quantum pictures are both essential to the understanding of nature. Without the combined power of classical and quantum concepts, the intricacies of the fission process could never have been understood. Bohr's notion of complementarity is triumphantly vindicated"" (John Archibald Wheeler, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 154 (2010)).
"BOHR, NIELS AND F. KALCKAR. - THE LIQUID DROP MODEL OF BOHR INTRODUCED.
Reference : 48816
(1937)
Copenhagen, Levin & Munksgaard,1937. 8vo. Uncut in orig. printed wrappers. In: ""Det KGL. Danske Videnskabernes Selskab. Mathematisk-fysiske Meddelelser. XIV,10"". 40 pp. Fine and clean.
First edition of the work in which Bohr introduced his famous Liquid Drop Model of the atom in order to interprete the nuclear structure. (The paper was not continued as Kalckar died the following year).""It had, of course, been clear to Bohr that analogies with atomic spectra could not be of help in interpreting his (earlier) picture of nuclear structure. Peripheral electrons, thinly spread within the atomic volume, can be compared to a dilute gas of particles interacting in pairs only. By contrast Bohr's picture of intranuclear motions of tightly bound nucleons should show 'essential collective aspects', he said. Now, together with Kalckar, he suggested that for nuclei a much more proper comparison would be with a drop of liquid. That analogy should not be taken too literally, the dynamics of a true liquid drop is vastly different from thta of nucleai. Yet the comparison, treated cautiously, was tempting and in the event proved fruitful in many respects, particularly in regard to collective motions.""(Pais ""Niels Bohr's Times"", pp. 339-40).""In the liquid drop model, formulated by Niels Bohr, the nucleons are imagined to interact strongly with each other, like the molecules in a drop of liquid. A given nucleon collides frequently with other nucleons in the nuclear interior, its mean free path as it moves about being substantially less than the nuclear radius. This constant ""jiggling around"" reminds us of the thermal agitation of the molecules in a drop of liquid. The liquid drop model permits us to correlate many facts about nuclear masses and binding energies"" it is useful in explaining nuclear fission. It also provides a useful model for understanding a large class of nuclear reactions."" (FAQ).Rosenfeld No 56.
"BOHR, N. (+) J. A. WHEELER (+) J. R. OPPENHEIMER (+) H. SNYDER.
Reference : 54015
(1939)
Lancaster, American Institute of Physics, 1939. Royal8vo. In the original green printed wrappers. In ""The Physical Review"", Volume 56, Second Series, Number 5, September 1. With cloth back-strip. A quire, affecting both papers, detached but without any loss of paper. A few minor tear throughout, far from affecting text. [Bohr & Wheeler:] Pp. 426-50. [Oppenheimer & Snyder:] Pp. 455-59. [Entire volume: Pp. 387-486].
First printing of two landmark papers, all of seminal importance in history of physics: The intricacies of the fission process, the groundwork for atomic and hydrogen bombs and the forgotten birth of black holes: The first theoretical description of a black hole, the production of a singularity when a sufficiently large neutron star collapses.Oppenheimer and Snyder's ""ON CONTINUED GRAVITATIONAL CONTRACTION"" constitute the very first theoretical prediction of a singularity when a sufficiently large neutron star collapses. This phenomenon was later to be coined as a black hole. ""Had J. Robert Oppenheimer not led the US effort to build the atomic bomb, he might still have been remembered for figuring out how a black hole could form."" (American Physical Society). The paper has by several physics historians been described as the forgotten birth of black holes. ""Oppenheimer and his graduate student George Volkoff presented the first analysis of the formation of a neutron star in a 1939 Physical Review paper titled, ""On Massive Neutron Stars"". Oppenheimer wondered what would happen to a very massive neutron star. The Schwartzschild analysis of General Relativity has a theoretical limit, called the ""Schwartzschild limit"", when the ratio of mass-to-radius of a star is 236,000 times greater than the ratio for our sun. When this limit is exceeded, the Schwartzschild analysis does not yield a solution. Oppenheimer believed that a neutron star could have sufficient mass to exceed this limit. What would happen to it? Oppenheimer and his graduate student Hartland Snyder applied General Relativity theory to a star with sufficient mass and density to exceed the Schwartzschild limit. The Schwartzschild analysis assumed that the size of the star stays constant with time. Oppenheimer and Snyder found that they could achieve a real solution from General Relativity when the Schwartzschild limit is exceeded by assuming that the diameter of the star decreases with time. They presented their analysis in a 1939 Physical Review paper, titled, ""On Continual Gravitational Contraction,"" which concluded with: ""When all thermonuclear sources of energy are exhausted, a sufficiently heavy star will collapse. Unless fission due to rotation, the radiation of mass, or the blowing off of mass by radiation, reduce the star's mass to the order of that of the sun, this contraction will continue indefinitely."" This analysis concluded that when the Schwartzschild limit is exceeded, the star must collapse indefinitely until it reaches a singularity having an infinite density of matter"" (Bjornson, Singularity Predictions of General Relativity, P. 4).The Chandrasekhar / Eddington controvery in the mid 30ies did discuss the fate of neutron stars but the first thoroughly theoretical desciption was first published here. ""THE MECHANISM OF NUCLEAR FISSION"" is the first fully worked out theory of nuclear fission, which laid the groundwork for atomic and hydrogen bombs.""Wheeler's technical mastery of physics is best seen in the classic paper of Bohr and Wheeler. Bohr and Wheeler wrote the paper in Princeton, where Bohr was visiting in the spring of 1939, a few months after the discovery of fission. The paper is a masterpiece of clear thinking and lucid writing. It reveals, at the center of the mystery of fission, a tiny world where everything can be calculated and everything understood. The tiny world is a nucleus of uranium 236, formed when a neutron is freshly captured by a nucleus of uranium 235. The uranium 236 nucleus sits precisely on the border between classical and quantum physics. Seen from the classical point of view, it is a liquid drop composed of a positively charged fluid. The electrostatic force that is trying to split it apart is balanced by the nuclear surface tension that is holding it together. The energy supplied by the captured neutron causes the drop to oscillate in various normal modes that can be calculated classically. Seen from the quantum point of view, the nucleus is a superposition of a variety of quantum states leading to different final outcomes. The final outcome may be a uranium 235 nucleus with a re-emitted neutron, or a uranium 236 nucleus with an emitted gamma-ray, or a pair of fission-fragment nuclei with one or more free neutrons. Bohr and Wheeler calculate the cross-section for fission of uranium 235 by a slow neutron and get the right answer within a factor of two. Their calculation is a marvelous demonstration of the power of classical mechanics and quantum mechanics working together. By studying this process in detail, they show how the complementary views provided by classical and quantum pictures are both essential to the understanding of nature. Without the combined power of classical and quantum concepts, the intricacies of the fission process could never have been understood. Bohr's notion of complementarity is triumphantly vindicated"" (John Archibald Wheeler, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 154 (2010)).
(Berlin, Stockholm, 1924-25). 4to. Bound in one full fabrikoid. As issued in ""Acta Mathematica"", vols 45,46,47. - Pp. 29-127, pp. 102-214 - pp. 238-281. Clean and fine. A very small tear to the last two leaves repaired without loss.
First edition of Harald Bohr's main work. Harald Bohr was younger brother to Niels Bohr. ""The problem of which function may be represented by Dirichlet series led Bohr to his main achievement, the theory of almost periodic functions, on which the greater part of his later work is concentrated....Whereas hitherto in the theory of Dirichlet series one always worked withh frequencies forming a monotonic sequence, Bohr discovered that in order to obtain an answer to the problem one would have to consider series with quite arbitrary frequencies. The answer was obtained by introducing the notion of almost periocicity. The theory was published in three papers (the offered papers) in ""Acta Mathematica"", and numerous mathematicians joined in the work on its simplification and extension. Thus Weil and Wiener connected it with the classical theories of integral equations and Fourier integrals, and Bochner developed a summation method for Bohr-Fourier series gneralizing Fejér's theorem."" (Børge Jessen in DSB).
London, Taylor & Francis, 1913. 8vo. Original printed wrappers" chipped, backstrip lacks. The whole issue. 200 pp., 2 plates.
First edition of Bohr's first work on nuclear physics, published just before his 'On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules'. During his visit to Manchester Bohr had the chance to get a first hand account of Rutherford's investigations on the penetration of alpha-particles through matter. In order to explain the large-angle scattering of alpha rays, which Rutherford had observed, he proposed his ""nuclear"" model of the atom in contrast to J.J. Thomson's ""plum pudding"" model in 1910. Bohr eagerly took up the new model and soon recognized its far-reaching implications. In particular, he pointed out that the nuclear model of the atom implied a sharp separation between the chemical properties, ascribed to the peripherical electrons, and the radioactive properties, which affected the nucleas itself. In this paper the theory of the decrease of velocity of moving electrified particles in passing through matter is given in a form, such that the rate of the decrease in the velocity depends on the frequency of vibration of the electrons in the atoms of the absorbing material. In the conclusion Bohr could state 'that a hydrogen atom contains only 1 electron outside the positively charged nucleas, and that a helium atom only contains 2 electrons outside the nucleas'.Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 5. Rosenfeld, Dictionary of Scientific Biography II, pp. 240-41.
Copenhagen, Bianco Lunas, 1929. Royal 8vo. Bound with the original wrappers and the original back-strip in a fine half morocco binding with gilt lettering to spine (Signed ""Ole Olsen 1978 Co´libri""). An exceptionally fine copy. 76 pp.
First edition of this collection of three articles translated into Danish and appearing as thus for the first time. Inscribed by Bohr (signed ""the author"") on the title-page: ""Hr. Assistent cand. mag. V. Thorsen / med venlig Hilsen / fra Forfatteren"". The work constitutes the first Danish translations of the present three articles: ""Atomic Theory and Mechanics"" (1925, Rosenfeld 33), ""The Quantum Postulate and the Recent Development of Atomic Theory"" (1928, Rosenfeld 37), and ""Wirkungsquantum und Naturbeschreibung"", (1929, Rosenfeld 39), here published together for the first time under the title ""Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature"" and with an introductory overview. The present collection of articles, translated into Danish, Bohr's mother tongue, constitutes an important insight into Bohr's thought and fundamental views on atomic theory and nature. The work, as it is here, has been elected as the Bohr-entry in the official list of Danish canonic literature, which collects the most important literary contributions to Danish culture. This is the only Bohr-item on the list. (see: http://www.kanonudvalget.dk). Rosenfeld, Bohr Bibliography No. 40.
"BOHR, N. (NIELS). - THE ATOMIC MODEL AND THE ""STATIONARY STATE""
Reference : 47170
(1915)
London, Taylor & Francis, 1915. Contemp. hcalf. Spine gilt, title- and tomelabels with gilt lettering. Spine a bit rubbed, some cracking to hinges, but covers not detached. In: ""The London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science"", Vol. XXX, Sixth Series. VIII,824 pp., textillustr. and 18 plates. (Entire volume offered). Bohr's papers: pp. 394-413 and pp. 581-612. A stamp to verso of titlepage. Internally clean and fine.
First appearance of a landmark paper in which Bohr found experimental support for his energy equation for electron orbits and of stationary states in the work of Franck and Hertz from 1914. Furthermore, Franck and Hertz unwittingly provided an independent confirmation of the concept of stationary state. In 1914 they observed an energy threshold in the electron-stopping power of mercury vapor. This threshold, Bohr explained the following year, corresponded to a transition between the normal state and another (first excited) stationary state of the mercury atom (and not, as Franck and Hertz had originally thought, to the ionization of the atom). The supramechanical stability implied by the assumption of stationary states was now empirically proved to comprehend stability with regard to electron impacts.""Bohr had to frequently revise and refine his atomic model in light of new discoveries. One significant paper ""On the Quantum Theory of Radiation and the Structure of the Atom,"" (the paper offered) added more specific details about atomic states. For example Bohr had earlier made the argument that electrons could jump from one orbit to another as energy was emitted or absorbed. In this paper, he theorezed that an atom possesses stationary states in which energy was neither emitted nor absorbed. Any emission or absorption that did occur, such as might induce an electron ump, would correspond to the transition between two stationary states.""(sparknotes.com).An: the second paper offered. When Bohr had finished his importent paper on the hydrogen atom ""On the Theory of Decrease of Velocity of Moving Electrified Particles on passing through Matter"" 1913, he completed another paper on that subject (the paper offered), which includes the influence of effects due to relativity and to straggling (that is, the fluctuations in energy and in range of individual particles).(Pais p. 128).Rosenfeld no 13 a. 14.The volume contains further importent papers by J.J. THOMSON, W.H. BRAGG, RUTHERFORD & BARNES, SODDY & HITCHINS etc.
København, Bianco Lunos Bogtrykkeri, 1918 - 1922. 4to. Uncut unopened in the original printed wrappers. In ""D. Kgl. Danske Vidensk. Selsk. Skrifter, afd., 8, række IV, 1-3"" / ""Mémoires de l'Académie Royale des Sciences et des Lettres de Danemark"". Wrapper with a few minor nicks and tears but otherwise a very fine and clean copy. 118 pp.
Collected offprint-edition of Bohr's seminal work ""On the Quantum Theory of the Line-Spectra"", marking the beginning of the quantum revolution in physics, introduced the concept of quantized energy levels, provided an explanation for the observed line spectra, and served as a foundational model that inspired further developments in quantum mechanics. It is conseidered one of Bohr's most important papers and the basis for his Nobel Prize. These papers give the first clear formulation of his 'correspondence principle' establishing the limit agreement of quantum and classical physics. ""By 1918 Bohr had visualized, at least in outline, the whole theory of atomic phenomena. ... He of course realized that he was still very far from a logically consistent framework wide enough to incorporate both the quantum postulates and those aspects of classical mechanics and electrodynamics that seemed to retain some validity. Nevertheless, he at once started writing up a synthetic exposition of his arguments and of all the evidence upon which they could have any bearing" in testing how well he could summarize what was known, he found occasion to check the soundness of his ideas and to improve their formulation. In the present case, however, he could hardly keep pace with the growth of the subject the paper he had in mind at the beginning developed into a four-part treatise, 'On the Theory of Line Spectra', publication of which dragged over four years without being completed" the first three parts appeared between 1918 and 1922, and the fourth, unfortunately, was never published. Thus, the full impact of Bohr's view remained confined to the small but brilliant circle of his disciples, who indeed managed better than their master to make them more widely known by the prompter publication of their own results"" (D.S.B. 2: 246-47).