Oleg Lavrentiev
Encyclopedia
Oleg Lavrentiev - Russian, Soviet and Ukrainian physicist.
, into a family of descendants of peasants.
His father, Alexander, completed 2 years at a parochial school
, worked as a clerk
at a Pskov factory, his mother, Alexandra - completed 4 years, a nurse.
During the war, at age 18 he volunteered for the front. Participated in the battles for the liberation of the Baltic States (1944–1945), transferred to the Sakhalin Military District, and continued military service in Poronaisk, at the just liberated from the Japanese island of Sakhalin
.
. (Advances in physics science) In 1948, Lavrentiev was instructed to prepare a lecture on nuclear physics. With a few days to prepare, he had time to rethink the problem and wrote a letter to the Central Committee of the CPSU (b). From Moscow came an order to create for him an atmosphere where he could work. In a guarded room dedicated to him, he wrote his first article, which he sent in July 1950 via secret mail to the department of heavy equipment engineering of the Central Committee.
His proposal consisted of two parts. Firstly, he proposed an implementation of a hydrogen bomb, based on lithium deuteride. In the second part of his work, he describes how to obtain electricity from a controlled thermonuclear reaction
. Sakharov reviewed his work and wrote in a review the following:
In 1950 Lavrentiev was demobilized from the army and came to Moscow, where he entered the Physics Department of Moscow State University
. A few months later he was summoned to the Minister of the measuring instrument (the nuclear industry) V.A. Makhnev, and a few days later - to the Kremlin to the chairman of an ad hoc committee on atomic and hydrogen weapons, Lavrentiy Beria
.
After meeting with Beria, Lavrentiev given a room in the new house and a scholarship. He was allowed to attend lectures at will and to request on-demand delivery of scientific literature. He was assigned a math supervising professor PhD A.A. Samarskii (later - academician and Hero of Socialist Labor).
In May 1951, Lavrentiev got access to newly opened State program of fusion research. (Laboratory of instrumentation of the USSR, currently - Kurchatov Institute), where were carried out research on high temperature plasma physics classified as top-secret. There was already ongoing testing and development of Andrei Sakharov
's and Igor Tamm
's ideas for the fusion reactor.
On August 12, 1953 the Soviet Union tested thermonuclear warhead based on the lithium deuteride. Unlike other participants in the development of new weapons that have received state awards, ranks and awards, Lavrentiev was denied admission to the lab, and was forced to write a thesis project without access to the lab and without a scientific adviser. Nonetheless, he graduated with honors based on his theoretical work on controlled thermonuclear fusion.
In the spring of 1956 Lavrentiev was sent to Kharkiv Theoretical Physics School
(KIPT, Kharkov, Ukraine
), and presented his report on the theory of electromagnetic traps to the director of the Institute K.D. Sinelnikov. In 1958, KIPT built the first electromagnetic trap.
" (Advances in physics science) published Lavrentiev's biography; his proposal that was mailed from Sakhalin, July 29, 1950; the review by Sakharov, and Beria's orders, which were kept in the Archives of the Russian Federation President designated as secret. That has reestablished the primacy of his scientific achievement.
Biography
Born in PskovPskov
Pskov is an ancient city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in the northwest of Russia about east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population: -Early history:...
, into a family of descendants of peasants.
His father, Alexander, completed 2 years at a parochial school
Parochial school
A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
, worked as a clerk
Clerk
Clerk, the vocational title, commonly refers to a white-collar worker who conducts general office or, in some instances, sales tasks. It is also occasionally used to refer to third-year medical students completing a medical clerkship. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record...
at a Pskov factory, his mother, Alexandra - completed 4 years, a nurse.
During the war, at age 18 he volunteered for the front. Participated in the battles for the liberation of the Baltic States (1944–1945), transferred to the Sakhalin Military District, and continued military service in Poronaisk, at the just liberated from the Japanese island of Sakhalin
Sakhalin
Sakhalin or Saghalien, is a large island in the North Pacific, lying between 45°50' and 54°24' N.It is part of Russia, and is Russia's largest island, and is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast...
.
The hydrogen bomb and controlled fusion
While in grade 7 (in 1941) upon reading "Introduction to Nuclear Physics", he showed interest in this topic. While in the military on Sakhalin Lavrentiev was educating himself, using the library of technical literature and college textbooks. With his measly military allowance he subscribed for the journal Uspekhi Fizicheskikh NaukUspekhi Fizicheskikh Nauk
Physics-Uspekhi is a scientific journal, a translation of the Russian journal of physics, Uspekhi Fizicheskikh Nauk , continuing since 1918. The journal publishes long review papers which are supposed to generalize and summarize previously published results, making them easier to use and to...
. (Advances in physics science) In 1948, Lavrentiev was instructed to prepare a lecture on nuclear physics. With a few days to prepare, he had time to rethink the problem and wrote a letter to the Central Committee of the CPSU (b). From Moscow came an order to create for him an atmosphere where he could work. In a guarded room dedicated to him, he wrote his first article, which he sent in July 1950 via secret mail to the department of heavy equipment engineering of the Central Committee.
His proposal consisted of two parts. Firstly, he proposed an implementation of a hydrogen bomb, based on lithium deuteride. In the second part of his work, he describes how to obtain electricity from a controlled thermonuclear reaction
Fusion power
Fusion power is the power generated by nuclear fusion processes. In fusion reactions two light atomic nuclei fuse together to form a heavier nucleus . In doing so they release a comparatively large amount of energy arising from the binding energy due to the strong nuclear force which is manifested...
. Sakharov reviewed his work and wrote in a review the following:
In 1950 Lavrentiev was demobilized from the army and came to Moscow, where he entered the Physics Department of Moscow State University
MSU Faculty of Physics
The Faculty of Physics of Moscow State University is the largest faculty of Moscow State University.-Nobel winners:*Igor Tamm *Ilya Frank *Lev Davidovich Landau...
. A few months later he was summoned to the Minister of the measuring instrument (the nuclear industry) V.A. Makhnev, and a few days later - to the Kremlin to the chairman of an ad hoc committee on atomic and hydrogen weapons, Lavrentiy Beria
Lavrentiy Beria
Lavrentiy Pavlovich Beria was a Georgian Soviet politician and state security administrator, chief of the Soviet security and secret police apparatus under Joseph Stalin during World War II, and Deputy Premier in the postwar years ....
.
After meeting with Beria, Lavrentiev given a room in the new house and a scholarship. He was allowed to attend lectures at will and to request on-demand delivery of scientific literature. He was assigned a math supervising professor PhD A.A. Samarskii (later - academician and Hero of Socialist Labor).
In May 1951, Lavrentiev got access to newly opened State program of fusion research. (Laboratory of instrumentation of the USSR, currently - Kurchatov Institute), where were carried out research on high temperature plasma physics classified as top-secret. There was already ongoing testing and development of Andrei Sakharov
Andrei Sakharov
Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov was a Soviet nuclear physicist, dissident and human rights activist. He earned renown as the designer of the Soviet Union's Third Idea, a codename for Soviet development of thermonuclear weapons. Sakharov was an advocate of civil liberties and civil reforms in the...
's and Igor Tamm
Igor Tamm
Igor Yevgenyevich Tamm was a Soviet physicist and Nobel laureate who received most prestigious Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov and Ilya Frank, for the discovery of Cherenkov radiation, made in 1934.-Biography:Tamm was born in Vladivostok, Russian Empire , in a...
's ideas for the fusion reactor.
On August 12, 1953 the Soviet Union tested thermonuclear warhead based on the lithium deuteride. Unlike other participants in the development of new weapons that have received state awards, ranks and awards, Lavrentiev was denied admission to the lab, and was forced to write a thesis project without access to the lab and without a scientific adviser. Nonetheless, he graduated with honors based on his theoretical work on controlled thermonuclear fusion.
In the spring of 1956 Lavrentiev was sent to Kharkiv Theoretical Physics School
Kharkiv Theoretical Physics School
The Kharkiv Theoretical Physics School was foundered by Lev Landau in Kharkov, Soviet Union . It is sometimes referred to as the Landau school...
(KIPT, Kharkov, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
), and presented his report on the theory of electromagnetic traps to the director of the Institute K.D. Sinelnikov. In 1958, KIPT built the first electromagnetic trap.
Restoring primacy
In August 2001, the journal "Uspekhi Fizicheskikh NaukUspekhi Fizicheskikh Nauk
Physics-Uspekhi is a scientific journal, a translation of the Russian journal of physics, Uspekhi Fizicheskikh Nauk , continuing since 1918. The journal publishes long review papers which are supposed to generalize and summarize previously published results, making them easier to use and to...
" (Advances in physics science) published Lavrentiev's biography; his proposal that was mailed from Sakhalin, July 29, 1950; the review by Sakharov, and Beria's orders, which were kept in the Archives of the Russian Federation President designated as secret. That has reestablished the primacy of his scientific achievement.