World of Scientific Discovery on Max Theodor Felix von Laue
The son of an army official, Max von Laue lived in a number of cities during his childhood, as his father's changing assignments prompted the family's frequent moves. Though he showed an aptitude for science in high school, it was not until he enrolled at the University of Strasbourg that he was able to fully devote himself to his studies. Under the tutelage of the preeminent physicist Max Planck, Laue studied theoretical physics, earning his Ph.D. in 1903. Beginning in 1905, he served as a teaching assistant to Planck, who had become his friend and mentor. During the next four years he and Planck developed the concept of entropy in physics, and they were among the first scientists to accept Albert Einstein's theory of relativity. When Laue joined the staff at the University of Munich, he began to focus his research on optics. At that time, there was great excitement in scientific community over Wilhelm Röntgen's discovery of X-rays. Scientists debated whether X-rays consisted of particles (as did cathode rays), longitudinal waves (like sound waves), or transverse waves (like light wave). Laue believed that Röntgen's rays must be similar to the transverse electromagnetic waves in light; what he (and the rest of the scientific community) lacked was a method for verifying his belief. While assisting a colleague with a mathematical investigation, Laue discovered a method for verifying the make-up of X-rays.
Diffraction gratings were used by scientists to diffract visible light and measure its wavelengths: if X-rays were made of the same kind of rays as light, they could also be diffracted and their wavelengths measured. However, it had been suggested that the wavelengths of X-rays would most likely be far too small to be diffracted by any man-made grating. Instead, Laue considered using a piece of crystal as a diffractor, since the three-dimensional lattice of atoms within a crystal might act as a diffraction grating for extremely short wavelengths. In 1912, he aimed an X-ray at a crystal of zinc sulfide, creating a perfect diffraction pattern. Laue's experiment identified conclusively the transverse nature of X-rays. Because of the three-dimensional structure of the crystal diffractor, this method (called X-ray crystallography) could also be used to diagram the exact positions of atoms within the crystal, as well as to determine the precise frequency of the X-ray. This gave scientists two powerful new abilities: first, if a crystal is used whose structure is known, the frequency of any X-ray can be calculated; second, if an X-ray of known frequency is used, the structure of unknown crystals can be observed and mapped. It is this latter ability that has most benefitted scientists. Laue was never particularly concerned with the actual applications of his discovery. Rather, he, like Planck, was more interested in the general and universal principles of science and nature. Although he was vehemently opposed to the rise of the Hitler regime and spoke actively in the defense of Einstein and other banned scientists, Laue was allowed by the Nazis to teach throughout World War II. He remained in Germany until the bombing of Berlin in 1944, when he was eventually sent to England. Laue received the 1917 Nobel Prize for physics for his discovery of X-ray crystallography, a discovery that Einstein called "one of the most beautiful in physics." This new science became the key element in Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin 's studies of the molecular structure of penicillin as well as the later study of amino acids and nucleic acid s.
This is the complete article, containing 580 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).
