Peter Debye

Peter Joseph William Debye (March 24, 1884 - November 2, 1966) (born Petrus Josephus Wilhelmus Debije) was a Dutch physical chemist.

Early life

Peter "Pie" Debye was born in Maastricht and after attending local schools in Maastricht went to the University of Aachen, Germany, only 30 km from Maastricht, in 1901. He studied mathematics and classical physics, and in 1905 received a degree in electrical engineering. In 1907 he published his first paper, a mathematically elegant solution of a problem involving eddy currents. At Aachen he studied under the theoretical physicist Arnold Sommerfeld, who later claimed that his most important discovery was Peter Debye.

Related Topics:
Maastricht - University of Aachen - Germany - 1901 - Mathematics - Physics - 1905 - Electrical engineering - 1907 - Eddy current - Arnold Sommerfeld

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In 1906, Sommerfeld received an appointment at Munich, and took Debye with him as his assistant. He got his Ph. D. with a dissertation on radiation pressure in 1908. In 1910 he derived the Planck radiation formula using a method which Max Planck agreed was simpler than his own method.

Related Topics:
1906 - Munich - Ph. D. - Radiation pressure - 1908 - 1910 - Planck radiation formula - Max Planck

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In 1911, when Albert Einstein took an appointment as a professor at Prague, Debye took his old professorship at Zürich. This was followed by moves to Utrecht in 1912, Göttingen in 1913, back to Zürich in 1920, to Leipzig in 1927, and to Berlin in 1934, where he became director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute, saw to the construction of new laboratories, and developed it into the now-world-regarded Max Planck Institute in 1938.

Related Topics:
1911 - Albert Einstein - Prague - Zürich - Utrecht - 1912 - Göttingen - 1913 - 1920 - Leipzig - 1927 - Berlin - 1934 - Kaiser Wilhelm Institute - Max Planck Institute - 1938

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In 1913 he married Mathilde Alberer. They had a son and a daughter; their son (Peter P. Debye) became a physicist and collaborated with Debye in some of his researches.

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