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There are two possible outcomes: If the result confirms the hypothesis,
then you've made a measurement. If the result is contrary
to the hypothesis, then you've made a discovery.
—Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi was born in Rome on September 29, 1901. He is best known for his contributions
to nuclear physics and the development quantum theory.
Fermi attended the University of Pisa, graduating in 1922. He became a lecturer at the University
of Florence for two years and then professor of theoretical physics in Rome. In 1934, while at
the University of Rome, Fermi began experiments where he bombarded a variety of elements with
neutrons. He discovered that slow moving neutrons were especially effective in producing radioactive
atoms. Not realizing he had split the atom, Fermi announced what he thought were elements beyond
uranium. Fermi won the 1938 Nobel Prize for physics for his work on nuclear processes. Also in
1938 two German physicists, Lise Meitner and Otto Frisch performed a similar experiment where
they split a uranium atom. They named the process of splitting atoms "nuclear fission."
In 1938 Fermi left Italy. The "official" reason was that his wife was of Hebrew origin and he feared
for her safety. The "un-official" story was that he needed funds to continue his research in nuclear
physics. Italy was a poor country at that time and there were no resources to be found to continue
his research. He was one of a large group of intellectuals who left other European countries with
the rise of National Socialism (the Nazi Party) in Germany and Fascism in Italy. Fermi settled
in the United States in 1939, and became professor of physics at Columbia University in New York
City.
Fermi continued to conduct nuclear fission experiments at Columbia University. In 1940, Fermi's team
confirmed that absorption of a neutron by a uranium nucleus can cause the nucleus to split into two
nearly equal parts, releasing several neutrons and enormous amounts of energy. The potential for a
self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction had become a strong possibility.
Fermi was placed in charge of the Manhattan Project at the University of Chicago in 1942. His team
developed the first atomic pile and produced the first nuclear chain reaction. The project was moved
to New Mexico in 1944, and on July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated at Alamogordo Air
Base.
After the war, Fermi continued his pioneering research on high energy particles. In 1953, Fermi visited
Italy for the final time. On November 28, 1954, he died of cancer at the University of Chicago.
Fermi is remembered as the "father of the atomic bomb."
Article Courtesy: Robin Chew Lucid Cafe
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