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J. J. Thomson — the Centenary of His Discovery of the Electron and of His Invention of Mass Spectrometry
Author(s) -
Griffiths Iwan W.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
rapid communications in mass spectrometry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.528
H-Index - 136
eISSN - 1097-0231
pISSN - 0951-4198
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0231(19970115)11:1<2::aid-rcm768>3.0.co;2-v
Subject(s) - mass spectrometry , chemistry , electromagnetic mass , analytical chemistry (journal) , engineering physics , physics , chromatography , quantum electrodynamics
Joseph John Thomson (1856–1940), physicist, demonstrated the existence of the electron and, by deflection methods, measured its charge‐to‐mass ratio in 1897. He later applied similar methods to the study of positive ions and sorted the constituents of the beams into positive ray parabolas each corresponding to a definite ratio of charge‐to‐mass. As we celebrate the centenary of the measurement of e/m , it is apt to reflect that ‘JJT’ could be regarded in fact as the pioneer of mass spectrometry, the roots of which can be traced right back to that measurement. In a remarkable career, Manchester‐born Thomson discovered the electron, revealed the existence of the internal structure of the atom and laid the foundations of mass spectrometry. As well as being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1906 for ‘Investigations on passage of electricity through gases’. One hundred years after his measurement of e/m , it is an appropriate time to look back on his achievements and to celebrate them in the light of the immense developments which have since taken place in science and, in particular, in mass spectrometry, largely due to his pioneering efforts. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.