Karl Glitscher
Encyclopedia
Karl Glitscher was a German physicist
who made contributions to quantum mechanics
.
at the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich
. For his doctoral dissertation, Sommerfeld asked Glitscher to compare the relativistic
theory of the electron
with Max Abraham’s
theory of the rigid electron relative to the fine structure
of spectral lines. Following a suggestion by Wilhelm Lenz
, a former student of Sommerfeld who received his doctorate in 1911, Glitscher was able to calculate the fine structure spectra and he found that the rigid electron was ruled out by Friedrich Paschen’s
data on one-electron atoms and the X-ray spectral doublets. Glitscher’s theoretical calculations served as his doctoral thesis, and he was awarded his doctorate in 1917.
and produced communication and command systems for military organizations and commercial shipping.
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...
who made contributions to quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...
.
Education
Glitscher studied under Arnold SommerfeldArnold Sommerfeld
Arnold Johannes Wilhelm Sommerfeld was a German theoretical physicist who pioneered developments in atomic and quantum physics, and also educated and groomed a large number of students for the new era of theoretical physics...
at the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich
Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich
The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich , commonly known as the University of Munich or LMU, is a university in Munich, Germany...
. For his doctoral dissertation, Sommerfeld asked Glitscher to compare the relativistic
Theory of relativity
The theory of relativity, or simply relativity, encompasses two theories of Albert Einstein: special relativity and general relativity. However, the word relativity is sometimes used in reference to Galilean invariance....
theory of the 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...
with Max Abraham’s
Max Abraham
Max Abraham was a German physicist.Abraham was born in Danzig, Imperial Germany to a family of Jewish merchants. His father was Moritz Abraham and his mother was Selma Moritzsohn. Attending the University of Berlin, he studied under Max Planck. He graduated in 1897...
theory of the rigid electron relative to the fine structure
Fine structure
In atomic physics, the fine structure describes the splitting of the spectral lines of atoms due to first order relativistic corrections.The gross structure of line spectra is the line spectra predicted by non-relativistic electrons with no spin. For a hydrogenic atom, the gross structure energy...
of spectral lines. Following a suggestion by Wilhelm Lenz
Wilhelm Lenz
Wilhelm Lenz was a German physicist, most notable for his invention of the Ising model and for his application of the Laplace–Runge–Lenz vector to the quantum mechanical treatment of hydrogen-like atoms.In 1906, Lenz graduated from the Klinger-Oberralschule, a non-classical secondary school...
, a former student of Sommerfeld who received his doctorate in 1911, Glitscher was able to calculate the fine structure spectra and he found that the rigid electron was ruled out by Friedrich Paschen’s
Friedrich Paschen
Louis Karl Heinrich Friedrich Paschen , was a German physicist, known for his work on electrical discharges. He is also known for the Paschen series, a series of hydrogen spectral lines in the infrared region that he first observed in 1908...
data on one-electron atoms and the X-ray spectral doublets. Glitscher’s theoretical calculations served as his doctoral thesis, and he was awarded his doctorate in 1917.
Career
Glitscher filed a patent in Germany in 1930 and in the United States in 1931 for an artificial horizon indicator for vehicles or similar platforms. The patent was assigned to Gesellschaft für elektrische Apparate mbH, in Marienfelde-Berlin. The Gesellschaft für elektrische Apparate (Gelap) was founded in 1920 to refine technical military equipment. Gelap evolved from the signals department of Siemens & HalskeSiemens & Halske
Siemens & Halske AG was a German electrical engineering company that later became part of Siemens AG.It was founded on 12 October 1847 as Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske by Ernst Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske...
and produced communication and command systems for military organizations and commercial shipping.
Selected Literature
- Karl Glitscher Spektroskopischer Vergleich zwischen den Theorien des starren und des deformierbaren Elektrons, Annalen der Physik 52 608–630 (1917) (abridged doctoral dissertation, University of Munich; received 14 May 1917, published in issue No.6 of 17 July 1917) as cited in Mehra, Volume 1, Part 2, 2001, p. 778.
Patents
- K. Glitscher US Patent 1,932,210, Indicator Berlin-Dauern, Germany, assigned to Gesellschaft für elektrische Apparate mbH, Marienfelde-Berlin, Germany. U.S. Application filed 19 September 1931, Serial Number 563,799, and in Germany 12 August 1930. (Google Patents, via scholar.google.com.)