Gamma ray

:This article is about electromagnetic radiation. For the power metal band, see Gamma Ray (band)

History

Gamma rays were discovered by the French chemist and physicist, Paul Ulrich Villard in 1900 while he was studying uranium. Working in the chemistry department of the École Normale in rue d'Ulm, Paris with self-constructed equipment, he found that the rays were not bent by a magnetic field.

Related Topics:
Paul Ulrich Villard - Uranium - École Normale - Paris - Magnetic field

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For a time, it was assumed that gamma rays were particles. The fact that they were rays was demonstrated by the British Physicist, William Henry Bragg in 1910 when he showed that the rays ionized gas in a similar way to X-rays.

Related Topics:
William Henry Bragg - X-ray

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In 1914, Ernest Rutherford and Edward Andrade showed that gamma rays were a form of electromagnetic radiation by measuring their wavelengths using crystal diffraction. The wavelengths are similar to those of X-rays and are very short, in the range 10-11m to 10-14m. It was Rutherford who coined the name 'gamma rays', after naming 'alpha' and 'beta' rays; the natures of the different rays were unknown at that time.

Related Topics:
Ernest Rutherford - Edward Andrade - Crystal diffraction - X-ray

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