Heike Kamerlingh Onnes
Encyclopedia
Heike Kamerlingh Onnes was a Dutch
physicist
and Nobel laureate. He pioneered refrigeration
techniques, and he explored how materials behaved when cooled to nearly absolute zero
. He was the first to liquify helium
. His production of extreme cryogenic temperatures led to his discovery of superconductivity
in 1911: for certain materials, electrical resistance
abruptly vanishes at very low temperatures.
. His father, Harm Kamerlingh Onnes, was a brickworks owner. His mother was Anna Gerdina Coers of Arnhem
.
In 1870, Kamerlingh Onnes attended the University of Groningen
. He studied under Robert Bunsen
and Gustav Kirchhoff
at the University of Heidelberg from 1871 to 1873. Again at Groningen, he obtained his masters in 1878 and a doctorate in 1879. His thesis was "Nieuwe bewijzen voor de aswenteling der aarde" (tr. New proofs of the rotation of the earth). From 1878 to 1882 he was assistant to Johannes Bosscha
, the director of the TU Delft (then Delft Polytechnic), for whom he substituted as lecturer in 1881 and 1882.
at the University of Leiden. In 1904 he founded a very large cryogenics
laboratory and invited other researchers to the location, which made him highly regarded in the scientific community. In 1908, he was the first physicist to liquify helium
, using the Hampson-Linde cycle
and cryostat
s. Using the Joule-Thomson effect
, he lowered the temperature to -269 °C, 3 °K. At the time this was the coldest temperature achieved on earth
. The original equipment is at the Boerhaave Museum
in Leiden.
), while his sister Jenny married another famous painter, Floris Verster (1861-1927).
, tin
and lead
) at very low temperatures. Some, such as William Thomson
(Lord Kelvin), believed that electron
s flowing through a conductor would come to a complete halt or, in other words, metal resistivity would become infinitely large at absolute zero. Others, including Kamerlingh Onnes, felt that a conductor's electrical resistance
would steadily decrease and drop to nil. Augustus Matthiessen
pointed out when the temperature decreases, the metal conductivity usually improves or in other words, the electrical resistivity usually decreases with a decrease of temperature.
On April 8, 1911, Kamerlingh Onnes found that at 4.2 kelvin
the resistance in a solid mercury wire immersed in liquid helium suddenly vanished. He immediately realized the significance of the discovery (as became clear when his notebook was deciphered a century later). He reported that "Mercury has passed into a new state, which on account of its extraordinary electrical properties may be called the superconductive state
". He published more articles about the phenomenon, initially referring to it as "supraconductivity" and, only later adopting the term "superconductivity".
Kamerlingh Onnes received widespread recognition for his work, including the 1913 Nobel Prize in Physics
for (in the words of the committee) "his investigations on the properties of matter at low temperatures which led, inter alia, to the production of liquid helium".
in Leiden. The apparatus he used to first liquefy helium is on display in the lobby of the physics department at Leiden University
, where the low temperature lab is also named in his honor. His student and successor as director of the lab Willem Hendrik Keesom
was the first person who was able to solidify helium, in 1926.
The Onnes-effect
referring to the creeping of superfluid
Helium is named in his honor.
The crater Kamerlingh Onnes
on the Moon
is named after him.
Onnes is also credited with coining the word "enthalpy
".
Onnes' discovery of superconductivity was named an IEEE Milestone in 2011.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and Nobel laureate. He pioneered refrigeration
Refrigeration
Refrigeration is a process in which work is done to move heat from one location to another. This work is traditionally done by mechanical work, but can also be done by magnetism, laser or other means...
techniques, and he explored how materials behaved when cooled to nearly absolute zero
Absolute zero
Absolute zero is the theoretical temperature at which entropy reaches its minimum value. The laws of thermodynamics state that absolute zero cannot be reached using only thermodynamic means....
. He was the first to liquify helium
Liquid helium
Helium exists in liquid form only at extremely low temperatures. The boiling point and critical point depend on the isotope of the helium; see the table below for values. The density of liquid helium-4 at its boiling point and 1 atmosphere is approximately 0.125 g/mL Helium-4 was first liquefied...
. His production of extreme cryogenic temperatures led to his discovery of superconductivity
Superconductivity
Superconductivity is a phenomenon of exactly zero electrical resistance occurring in certain materials below a characteristic temperature. It was discovered by Heike Kamerlingh Onnes on April 8, 1911 in Leiden. Like ferromagnetism and atomic spectral lines, superconductivity is a quantum...
in 1911: for certain materials, electrical resistance
Electrical resistance
The electrical resistance of an electrical element is the opposition to the passage of an electric current through that element; the inverse quantity is electrical conductance, the ease at which an electric current passes. Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with the mechanical...
abruptly vanishes at very low temperatures.
Early years
Kamerlingh Onnes was born in Groningen, NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. His father, Harm Kamerlingh Onnes, was a brickworks owner. His mother was Anna Gerdina Coers of Arnhem
Arnhem
Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...
.
In 1870, Kamerlingh Onnes attended the University of Groningen
University of Groningen
The University of Groningen , located in the city of Groningen, was founded in 1614. It is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands as well as one of its largest. Since its inception more than 100,000 students have graduated...
. He studied under Robert Bunsen
Robert Bunsen
Robert Wilhelm Eberhard Bunsen was a German chemist. He investigated emission spectra of heated elements, and discovered caesium and rubidium with Gustav Kirchhoff. Bunsen developed several gas-analytical methods, was a pioneer in photochemistry, and did early work in the field of organoarsenic...
and Gustav Kirchhoff
Gustav Kirchhoff
Gustav Robert Kirchhoff was a German physicist who contributed to the fundamental understanding of electrical circuits, spectroscopy, and the emission of black-body radiation by heated objects...
at the University of Heidelberg from 1871 to 1873. Again at Groningen, he obtained his masters in 1878 and a doctorate in 1879. His thesis was "Nieuwe bewijzen voor de aswenteling der aarde" (tr. New proofs of the rotation of the earth). From 1878 to 1882 he was assistant to Johannes Bosscha
Johannes Bosscha
Johannes Bosscha Jr. was a Dutch physicist.Bosscha came from a family long known for their academic achievements. His great-grandfather and grandfather were classical scholars. His father, Johannes Bosscha Sr...
, the director of the TU Delft (then Delft Polytechnic), for whom he substituted as lecturer in 1881 and 1882.
University of Leiden
From 1882 to 1923 Kamerlingh Onnes served as professor of experimental physicsExperimental physics
Within the field of physics, experimental physics is the category of disciplines and sub-disciplines concerned with the observation of physical phenomena in order to gather data about the universe...
at the University of Leiden. In 1904 he founded a very large cryogenics
Cryogenics
In physics, cryogenics is the study of the production of very low temperature and the behavior of materials at those temperatures. A person who studies elements under extremely cold temperature is called a cryogenicist. Rather than the relative temperature scales of Celsius and Fahrenheit,...
laboratory and invited other researchers to the location, which made him highly regarded in the scientific community. In 1908, he was the first physicist to liquify helium
Helium
Helium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
, using the Hampson-Linde cycle
Hampson-Linde cycle
The Hampson–Linde cycle is based on the Joule-Thomson effectand is used in the liquefaction of gases. W. Hampson and Carl von Linde independently filed for patent of the cycle in 1895.-External links:*...
and cryostat
Cryostat
A cryostat is a device used to maintain cold cryogenic temperatures. Low temperatures may be maintained within a cryostat by using various refrigeration methods, most commonly using cryogenic fluid bath such as liquid helium. Hence it is usually assembled into a vessel, similar in construction...
s. Using the Joule-Thomson effect
Joule-Thomson effect
In thermodynamics, the Joule–Thomson effect or Joule–Kelvin effect or Kelvin–Joule effect describes the temperature change of a gas or liquid when it is forced through a valve or porous plug while kept insulated so that no heat is exchanged with the environment. This procedure is called a...
, he lowered the temperature to -269 °C, 3 °K. At the time this was the coldest temperature achieved on earth
Coldest temperature achieved on Earth
The lowest temperature ever recorded at the surface of the Earth was at the Russian Vostok Station in Antarctica July 21, 1983. Lower temperatures have been achieved in the laboratory, including a record low temperature of 100 pK, or 1.0 × 10-10 K in 1999.- Early cooling :In...
. The original equipment is at the Boerhaave Museum
Boerhaave Museum
Museum Boerhaave is a museum of the history of science and medicine, based in Leiden, the Netherlands. The museum hosts a collection of historical scientific instruments from all disciplines, but mainly from medicine, physics, and astronomy.-Introduction:...
in Leiden.
Family
He was married to Maria Adriana Wilhelmina Elisabeth Bijleveld (m. 1887) and had one child, named Albert. His brother Menso Kamerlingh Onnes (1860-1925) was a fairly well known painter (and father of another painter, Harm Kamerlingh OnnesHarm Kamerlingh Onnes
Harm Henrick Kamerlingh Onnes was a Dutch painter, the nephew of physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes. -Source:* at the Netherlands Institute for Art History....
), while his sister Jenny married another famous painter, Floris Verster (1861-1927).
Superconductivity
Kamerlingh Onnes conducted (in 1911) electrical analysis of pure metals (mercuryMercury (element)
Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...
, tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
and lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
) at very low temperatures. Some, such as William Thomson
William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin
William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin OM, GCVO, PC, PRS, PRSE, was a mathematical physicist and engineer. At the University of Glasgow he did important work in the mathematical analysis of electricity and formulation of the first and second laws of thermodynamics, and did much to unify the emerging...
(Lord Kelvin), believed that electron
Electron
The electron is a subatomic particle with a negative elementary electric charge. It has no known components or substructure; in other words, it is generally thought to be an elementary particle. An electron has a mass that is approximately 1/1836 that of the proton...
s flowing through a conductor would come to a complete halt or, in other words, metal resistivity would become infinitely large at absolute zero. Others, including Kamerlingh Onnes, felt that a conductor's electrical resistance
Electrical resistance
The electrical resistance of an electrical element is the opposition to the passage of an electric current through that element; the inverse quantity is electrical conductance, the ease at which an electric current passes. Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with the mechanical...
would steadily decrease and drop to nil. Augustus Matthiessen
Augustus Matthiessen
Augustus Matthiessen, FRS , the son of a merchant, was a British chemist and physicist who obtained his PhD in Germany at the University of Gießen in 1852 with Johann Heinrich Buff. He then worked with Robert Bunsen at the University of Heidelberg from 1853 to 1856...
pointed out when the temperature decreases, the metal conductivity usually improves or in other words, the electrical resistivity usually decreases with a decrease of temperature.
On April 8, 1911, Kamerlingh Onnes found that at 4.2 kelvin
Kelvin
The kelvin is a unit of measurement for temperature. It is one of the seven base units in the International System of Units and is assigned the unit symbol K. The Kelvin scale is an absolute, thermodynamic temperature scale using as its null point absolute zero, the temperature at which all...
the resistance in a solid mercury wire immersed in liquid helium suddenly vanished. He immediately realized the significance of the discovery (as became clear when his notebook was deciphered a century later). He reported that "Mercury has passed into a new state, which on account of its extraordinary electrical properties may be called the superconductive state
Superconductivity
Superconductivity is a phenomenon of exactly zero electrical resistance occurring in certain materials below a characteristic temperature. It was discovered by Heike Kamerlingh Onnes on April 8, 1911 in Leiden. Like ferromagnetism and atomic spectral lines, superconductivity is a quantum...
". He published more articles about the phenomenon, initially referring to it as "supraconductivity" and, only later adopting the term "superconductivity".
Kamerlingh Onnes received widespread recognition for his work, including the 1913 Nobel Prize in Physics
Nobel Prize in Physics
The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded once a year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895 and awarded since 1901; the others are the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Prize, and...
for (in the words of the committee) "his investigations on the properties of matter at low temperatures which led, inter alia, to the production of liquid helium".
Legacy
Some of the instruments he devised for his experiments can still be seen at the Boerhaave MuseumBoerhaave Museum
Museum Boerhaave is a museum of the history of science and medicine, based in Leiden, the Netherlands. The museum hosts a collection of historical scientific instruments from all disciplines, but mainly from medicine, physics, and astronomy.-Introduction:...
in Leiden. The apparatus he used to first liquefy helium is on display in the lobby of the physics department at Leiden University
Leiden University
Leiden University , located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands. The university was founded in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt in the Eighty Years' War. The royal Dutch House of Orange-Nassau and Leiden University still have a close...
, where the low temperature lab is also named in his honor. His student and successor as director of the lab Willem Hendrik Keesom
Willem Hendrik Keesom
Willem Hendrik Keesom was a Dutch physicist who, in 1926, invented a method to freeze liquid helium.He also developed the first mathematical description of dipole-dipole interactions in 1921...
was the first person who was able to solidify helium, in 1926.
The Onnes-effect
Rollin film
A Rollin film, named after Bernard V. Rollin, is a 30 nm-thick liquid film of helium in the helium II state. It exhibits a "creeping" effect in response to surfaces extending past the film's level...
referring to the creeping of superfluid
Superfluid
Superfluidity is a state of matter in which the matter behaves like a fluid without viscosity and with extremely high thermal conductivity. The substance, which appears to be a normal liquid, will flow without friction past any surface, which allows it to continue to circulate over obstructions and...
Helium is named in his honor.
The crater Kamerlingh Onnes
Kamerlingh Onnes (crater)
Kamerlingh Onnes is a lunar crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies less than a crater diameter to the north-northwest of the crater Kolhörster. North of Kamerlingh Onnes lies Shternberg and to the northwest is Weyl....
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him.
Onnes is also credited with coining the word "enthalpy
Enthalpy
Enthalpy is a measure of the total energy of a thermodynamic system. It includes the internal energy, which is the energy required to create a system, and the amount of energy required to make room for it by displacing its environment and establishing its volume and pressure.Enthalpy is a...
".
Onnes' discovery of superconductivity was named an IEEE Milestone in 2011.
Honors and awards
- Matteucci MedalMatteucci MedalThe Matteucci Medal was established to award physicists for their fundamental contributions. Under an Italian Royal Decree dated July 10, 1870, the Italian Society of Sciences was authorized to receive a donation from Carlo Matteucci for the establishment of the Prize.Matteucci Medalists* 1868...
(1910) - Rumford MedalRumford MedalThe Rumford Medal is awarded by the Royal Society every alternating year for "an outstandingly important recent discovery in the field of thermal or optical properties of matter made by a scientist working in Europe". First awarded in 1800, it was created after a 1796 donation of $5000 by the...
(1912) - Nobel Prize for Physics (1913)
- Franklin MedalFranklin MedalThe Franklin Medal was a science and engineering award presented by the Franklin Institute, of Philadelphia, PA, USA.-Laureates:*1915 - Thomas Alva Edison *1915 - Heike Kamerlingh Onnes *1916 - John J...
(1915)
Selected publications
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Nieuwe bewijzen voor de aswenteling der aarde." Ph.D. dissertation. Groningen, Netherlands, 1879.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Algemeene theorie der vloeistoffen." Amsterdam Akad. Verhandl; 21, 1881.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "On the Cryogenic Laboratory at Leyden and on the Production of Very Low Temperature." Comm. Phys. Lab. Univ. Leiden; 14, 1894.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Théorie générale de l'état fluide." Haarlem Arch. Neerl.; 30, 1896.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Further experiments with liquid helium. C. On the change of electric resistance of pure metals at very low temperatures, etc. IV. The resistance of pure mercury at helium temperatures." Comm. Phys. Lab. Univ. Leiden; No. 120b, 1911.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Further experiments with liquid helium. D. On the change of electric resistance of pure metals at very low temperatures, etc. V. The disappearance of the resistance of mercury." Comm. Phys. Lab. Univ. Leiden; No. 122b, 1911.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "Further experiments with liquid helium. G. On the electrical resistance of pure metals, etc. VI. On the sudden change in the rate at which the resistance of mercury disappears." Comm. Phys. Lab. Univ. Leiden; No. 124c, 1911.
- Kamerlingh Onnes, H., "On the Lowest Temperature Yet Obtained." Comm. Phys. Lab. Univ. Leiden; No. 159, 1922.
See also
- Timeline of low-temperature technologyTimeline of low-temperature technologyThe following is a timeline of low-temperature technology and cryogenic technology .-16th century BCE – 17th century CE :...
- Timeline of states of matter and phase transitionsTimeline of states of matter and phase transitionsTimeline of states of matter and phase transitions* 1895 – Pierre Curie discovers that induced magnetization is proportional to magnetic field strength* 1911 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discloses his research on superconductivity...
- Coldest temperature achieved on earthColdest temperature achieved on EarthThe lowest temperature ever recorded at the surface of the Earth was at the Russian Vostok Station in Antarctica July 21, 1983. Lower temperatures have been achieved in the laboratory, including a record low temperature of 100 pK, or 1.0 × 10-10 K in 1999.- Early cooling :In...
- List of Nobel laureates
- History of superconductivityHistory of superconductivityThe history of superconductivity, the property exhibited by certain substances of lacking electrical resistance at temperatures close to absolute zero, began at the end of the 19th century and culminated in Heike Kamerlingh Onnes's 1911 discovery...
- Harm Kamerlingh OnnesHarm Kamerlingh OnnesHarm Henrick Kamerlingh Onnes was a Dutch painter, the nephew of physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes. -Source:* at the Netherlands Institute for Art History....
Further reading
- Van Delft, D. "Freezing Physics: Heike Kamerlingh Onnes and the Quest for Cold"
- Levelt-Sengers, J. M. H., "How fluids unmix : discoveries by the School of Van der Waals and Kamerlingh Onnes". Amsterdam, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van WetenschappenRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and SciencesThe Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences is an organisation dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands...
, 2002. ISBN 90-6984-357-9 - Kamerlingh Onnes, Heike, (Gavroglou, Kōstas. [ed.], and Goudaroulis, Yorgos [ed.]) "Through measurement to knowledge : the selected papers of Heike Kamerlingh Onnes (1853-1926)". Dordrecht, Boston, Kluwer Academic Publishers, c1991. Goudaroulis, Yorgos. ISBN 0-7923-0825-5
- International Institute of Refrigeration (First International Commission), "Rapports et communications issus du Laboratoire Kamerlingh Onnes". International Congress of Refrigeration (7th; 1936; La Hauge), Amsterdam, 1936.
External links
- Scientists of the Dutch School Kamerlingh Onnes, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
- Albert van Helden Heike Kamerlingh Onnes 1853 – 1926 In: K. van Berkel, A. van Helden, and L. Palm ed., A History of Science in The Netherlands. Survey, Themes and Reference (Leiden: Brill, 1999) 491 - 494.
- Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
, Physics 1913 -- official site. - Helium liquefier, G.J. Flim, Leiden, 1908 Drawing of the Physics Laboratory in Leiden, 1921 - Boerhaave Museum Dutch National Museum of the History of Science and Medicine.
- About Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, Nobel-winners.com.
- Eric W. Weisstein, Onnes.html Kamerlingh Onnes, Heike (1853-1926).
- Dirk Reimer, "Historical background", A Guide to Superconductivity. 1997.
- Museum Boerhaave Negen Nederlandse Nobelprijswinnaars
- J. van den Handel, Kamerlingh Onnes, Heike (1853-1926), in Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland. (In Dutch).
- Biography of Heike Kamerlingh Onnes (1853 – 1926) at the National library of the Netherlands.
- Leiden University historical web site