Edward Victor Appleton English physicist, Nobel laureate 1947 Date of Birth: 06.09.1892 Country: Great Britain

1. Biography of Edward Victor Appleton
2. Early Life and Education
3. Career
4. Contributions to Physics
5. Achievements and Honors
6. Legacy

Biography of Edward Victor Appleton

Edward Victor Appleton was born on September 6, 1892, in Bradford, Yorkshire. He was an English physicist and the recipient of the Nobel Prize in 1947 for his research on the ionosphere.

Early Life and Education

Appleton attended St. John's College, Cambridge University, but had to interrupt his studies due to the outbreak of World War I. He served in the signal corps during the war and, upon returning to Cambridge, began studying radio physics.

Career

In 1920, Appleton became an assistant demonstrator in physics at the Cavendish Laboratory, and in 1922, he became a junior lecturer at Trinity College. From 1924 to 1936, he was a professor at the University of London, and from 1936 to 1939, he held the same position at Cambridge University. In 1939, he became the Secretary of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research in the United Kingdom, a position he held until 1949. Afterward, he served as the rector of the University of Edinburgh.

Contributions to Physics

Appleton's main work focused on radio physics, particularly the propagation and attenuation of radio waves. In 1924, he, along with English physicist M. Barnett, discovered the conducting atmospheric layer known as the ionosphere, whose existence had been predicted by A. Kennelly and O. Heaviside. In 1926, Appleton discovered the second, higher reflecting layer called the F-layer, or Appleton layer, which allows for the propagation of shortwave radio waves around the Earth. He also demonstrated that radio waves reflected by this layer are elliptically polarized. Appleton studied the ionization density of various reflecting layers in the upper atmosphere and established the connection between their conductivity and solar activity.

Achievements and Honors

In 1926, Appleton became a fellow of the Royal Society of London, and in 1941, he was knighted for his contributions to science. He received several awards and distinctions, including the M. Lybman Prize in 1929 and the M. Faraday Medal in 1946.

Legacy

Edward Victor Appleton passed away in Edinburgh on April 21, 1965. His pioneering research on the ionosphere and radio wave propagation laid the foundation for advancements in telecommunications and space exploration. His discoveries continue to influence our understanding of the Earth's atmosphere and its interaction with electromagnetic waves.