Leon Lichtenstein
Encyclopedia
Leon Lichtenstein was a Polish-German mathematician
, who made contributions to the areas of differential equations, conformal mapping, and potential theory
. He was also interested in theoretical physics, publishing research in hydrodynamics and astronomy
.
. His cousin, Leo Wiener
, was the father of MIT mathematician Norbert Wiener
. He studied in Berlin
, earning both a doctorate in mechanical
and electrical engineering
at the Technische Hochschule Berlin and a doctorate in mathematics at the Friedrich Wilhelm University
with a thesis on differential equation
s written under the supervision of Hermann Schwarz
and Friedrich Schottky
. From 1902 he worked as an electrical engineer for Siemens & Halske
, then, from 1910, he turned to the academic world by becoming privatdozent at the Berlin Technische Hochschule. Lichtenstein was one of the founders, in 1918, and the first editor of the journal Mathematische Zeitschrift
. In 1920 he moved to a mathematics chair at the University of Munster
and in 1922 he joined the University of Leipzig
where he would spend the rest of his career. At the University of Leipzig he founded a mathematical school and his students, including Ernst Hölder
, Erich Kähler
, Aurel Wintner
, Hermann Boerner and Karl Maruhn, continuing his research in mathematics and theoretical physics. In 1933, as the Nazi party came to power in Germany, Lichtenstein abandoned his position at the university and left to Poland, as he would have been dismissed anyway for being Jewish. Shortly after, on 21 August 1933, he died of heart and kidney problems in Zakopane, in Poland.
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
, who made contributions to the areas of differential equations, conformal mapping, and potential theory
Potential theory
In mathematics and mathematical physics, potential theory may be defined as the study of harmonic functions.- Definition and comments :The term "potential theory" was coined in 19th-century physics, when it was realized that the fundamental forces of nature could be modeled using potentials which...
. He was also interested in theoretical physics, publishing research in hydrodynamics and astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
.
Life and work
Leon Lichtenstein was born on 16 May 1878 in a jewish family in Warsaw, PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. His cousin, Leo Wiener
Leo Wiener
Leo Wiener was an Americanhistorian, linguist, author and translator of Polish-Jewish origin. Wiener was born in Russia and spent the early part of his childhood there, before coming to the United States alone, with the purpose of creating a vegetarian commune in Belize...
, was the father of MIT mathematician Norbert Wiener
Norbert Wiener
Norbert Wiener was an American mathematician.A famous child prodigy, Wiener later became an early researcher in stochastic and noise processes, contributing work relevant to electronic engineering, electronic communication, and control systems.Wiener is regarded as the originator of cybernetics, a...
. He studied in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, earning both a doctorate in mechanical
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
and electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
at the Technische Hochschule Berlin and a doctorate in mathematics at the Friedrich Wilhelm University
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
with a thesis on differential equation
Differential equation
A differential equation is a mathematical equation for an unknown function of one or several variables that relates the values of the function itself and its derivatives of various orders...
s written under the supervision of Hermann Schwarz
Hermann Schwarz
Karl Hermann Amandus Schwarz was a German mathematician, known for his work in complex analysis. He was born in Hermsdorf, Silesia and died in Berlin...
and Friedrich Schottky
Friedrich Schottky
Friedrich Hermann Schottky was a German mathematician who worked on elliptic, abelian, and theta functions and invented Schottky groups. He was born in Breslau, Germany and died in Berlin....
. From 1902 he worked as an electrical engineer for Siemens & Halske
Siemens & 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...
, then, from 1910, he turned to the academic world by becoming privatdozent at the Berlin Technische Hochschule. Lichtenstein was one of the founders, in 1918, and the first editor of the journal Mathematische Zeitschrift
Mathematische Zeitschrift
Mathematische Zeitschrift is a mathematical journal for pure and applied mathematics published by Springer Verlag....
. In 1920 he moved to a mathematics chair at the University of Munster
University of Münster
The University of Münster is a public university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The WWU is part of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, a society of Germany's leading research universities...
and in 1922 he joined the University of Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
where he would spend the rest of his career. At the University of Leipzig he founded a mathematical school and his students, including Ernst Hölder
Ernst Hölder
Ernst Hölder was a German mathematician.The son of Otto Hölder, Ernst Hölder worked mainly in the field of mathematical physics and was a member of the Saxonian Academy of Sciences....
, Erich Kähler
Erich Kähler
was a German mathematician with wide-ranging geometrical interests.Kähler was born in Leipzig, and studied there. He received his Ph.D. in 1928 from the University of Leipzig. He held professorial positions in Königsberg, Leipzig, Berlin and Hamburg...
, Aurel Wintner
Aurel Wintner
Aurel Friedrich Wintner was a mathematician noted for his research in mathematical analysis, number theory, differential equations and probability theory. He was one of the founders of probabilistic number theory...
, Hermann Boerner and Karl Maruhn, continuing his research in mathematics and theoretical physics. In 1933, as the Nazi party came to power in Germany, Lichtenstein abandoned his position at the university and left to Poland, as he would have been dismissed anyway for being Jewish. Shortly after, on 21 August 1933, he died of heart and kidney problems in Zakopane, in Poland.