August Carl Helmholz

Biography

Abstract

August Carl Helmholz was Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of California, Berkeley (1940-2003). His research interests included the cyclotron and high-energy physics.

Important Dates

May 24, 1915Birth, Evanston (Ill.).

1936Obtained AB, Harvard University, Cambridge (Mass.).

1936 – 1937Awarded Henry Fellowship, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge.

1940Obtained PhD in Physics, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley (Calif.).

1940 – 2003Instructor and Physicist, Radiation Laboratory (1940-1942); Assistant Professor of Physics (1942-1948); Physicist, Manhattan Project, Berkeley Radiation Laboratory (1943-1946); Physicist, Radiation Laboratory (1946-1958); Associate Professor of Physics (1948-1951); Professor (1951-1980); Chair, Department of Physics (1955-1962); Physicist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (1958-2003); and Emeritus Professor (1980-2003), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley (Calif.).

1962 – 1963Guggenheim Fellow, European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

1964 – 1966Member, Governing Board, American Institute of Physics.

October 29, 2003Death, Lafayette (Calif.).

Occupation

Nuclear physicist.

Places

Birth

Evanston (Ill.)

Undergraduate Education

Cambridge (Mass.)

Graduate Education

Berkeley (Calif.)

Employment

Berkeley (Calif.)

Death

Lafayette (Calif.)

Subjects

Cyclotrons.

Mass spectrometry.

Particles (Nuclear physics).

Radioactivity.

Relationships

People

Family

Helmholz, Charlotte Chalan Colby

Daughter.

Helmholz, Edith Roth

Daughter.

Helmholz, Elizabeth Jane Little

Wife, married in 1938.

Helmholz, Fred

Son.

Helmholz, George Lindsay

Son.

Helmholz, Henry Frederic, Jr.

Brother.

Helmholz, Henry Fredrick

Father.

Helmholz, Isabel Gray Lindsay

Mother.

Helmholz, Lindsay

Brother.

Helmholz, Margaret Burchell

Sister.

Advisors & Collaborators

Anderson, John D., 1930-

Advised by Helmholz at University of California, Berkeley, "Production of neutral photopions as a function of atomic weight."

Barish, B. C. (Barry Clark), 1936-

Advised by Helmholz at University of California, Berkeley, "The Energy and Spin Change of Nuclear Gamma Ray Transitions," and both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Jones, Lawrence W. (Lawrence William)

Advised by Helmholz at University of California, Berkeley, "Excitation function for photoneutron production from 80 to 320 mev."

Levinthal, Cyrus

Advised by Helmholz at University of California, Berkeley.

McMillan, Edwin M. (Edwin Mattison), 1907-

Ph.D. advisor at University of California, Berkeley. Both employed at University of California, Berkeley and Lawrence Radiation Laboratory.

Strauch, Karl, 1922-2000

Advised by Helmholz at University of California, Berkeley, "I. Studies in Nuclear Reactions Induced by High Energy X-rays: II. Nuclear Isomerism in Co58."

Colleagues

Abrahams, Elihu

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Alvarez, Luis W., 1911-1988

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Appelbaum, J. A. (Joel A.)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Arnowitt, Richard

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Bardeen, John

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Baym, Gordon

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Bialek, William S.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Birge, Raymond T. (Raymond Thayer), 1887-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Bradbury, Norris, 1909-1997

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Brode, Robert B. (Robert Bigham), 1900-1986

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Brown, Harold, 1927-2019

Both employed at Lawrence Radiation Laboratory.

Case, Kenneth M.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Chamberlain, O. (Owen)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Chemla, D. S.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Chew, Geoffrey F.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Chu, Steven

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Clarke, John, 1942-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Clauser, John F. (John Francis), 1942-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Cohen, Marvin L.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Commins, Eugene D.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Corson, Dale R.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Davidson, Ronald C.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Davis, J. C. Séamus

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Deser, S. (Stanley)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Dynes, Robert C.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Emery, V. J. (Victor J.)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Falcone, Roger W.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Falicov, L. M. (Leopoldo Maximo), 1933-1995

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Fetter, Alexander L., 1937-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Freedman, Daniel Z.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Freedman, Stuart J.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Gaillard, Mary K.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Glaser, D. A.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Glashow, Sheldon L.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Goldberger, Marvin L.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Goldhaber, Gerson

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Hahn, E. L. (Erwin Louis), 1921-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Heeger, Alan J.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Hellman, Frances

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Holdren, John P.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Hopfield, John J.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Jackson, John David, 1925-2016

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Jeffries, C. D., 1922-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Kahn, Steven Michael

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Kittel, Charles

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Lange, Andrew

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Langenberg, D. N., 1932-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Lawrence, Ernest Orlando, 1901-1958

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Lee, T. D., 1926-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Loeb, Leonard B. (Leonard Benedict), 1891-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Louie, Steven G., 1949-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Mandelstam, Stanley

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

McKee, Christopher, 1942-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Moyer, Burton J., 1912-1973

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Murnane, Margaret

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Nierenberg, William Aaron, 1919-2000

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Oppenheimer, J. Robert, 1904-1967

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Panofsky, Wolfgang K. H. (Wolfgang Kurt Hermann), 1919-2007

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Perlmutter, Saul

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Phillips, J. C.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Price, Paul Buford

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Randall, Lisa

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Reynolds, John Hamilton, 1923-2000

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Richards, Paul L. (Paul Linford)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Riess, Adam, 1969-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Ruderman, Malvin A.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Sachs, Robert Green, 1916-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Schiff, Leonard I. (Leonard Isaac), 1915-1971

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Schwinger, Julian, 1918-1994

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Seaborg, Glenn T. (Glenn Theodore), 1912-1999

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Segrè, Emilio

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Serber, R. (Robert)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Shapiro, Marjorie

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Shen, Y. R.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Smoot, George

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Steinberger, J.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Steiner, Herbert M.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Stubbs, Christopher

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Teller, Edward, 1908-2003

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Thomas, Gareth, 1932-2014

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Tinkham, Michael

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Townes, Charles H.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Trilling, George H.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Van Harlingen, Dale J.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Watson, Kenneth M.

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Weinberg, Steven, 1933-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Wick, G. C. (Gian Carlo)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Wu, C. S. (Chien-shiung), 1912-1997

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

York, Herbert F. (Herbert Frank)

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Zumino, B. (Bruno), 1923-

Both employed at University of California, Berkeley.

Institutions

Major Positions

Lawrence Radiation Laboratory

Instructor and Physicist and Physicist, Manhattan Project.

University of California, Berkeley. Department of Physics

Obtained PhD in Physics (1940). Instructor; Assistant Professor of Physics; Associate Professor of Physics; Professor; Chair, Department of Physics; and Emeritus Professor.

Professional Activities & Affiliations

American Institute of Physics

Member, Governing Board.

Cavendish Laboratory (Cambridge, England)

Received Henry Fellowship.

European Organization for Nuclear Research

Guggenheim Fellow.

Harvard University. Department of Physics

Obtained AB (1936).

Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory

Manhattan Project (U.S.)

Physicist, Berkeley Radiation Laboratory.

Resources

Archival Resources

Author

A. Carl Helmholz papers, circa 1945-1981.

The Bancroft Library

University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA

Oral history interview with August Carl Helmholz, 1975 June 20 to November 11 and 1989 October 3 to 1990 January 16.

The Bancroft Library

University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA

UC Berkeley Department of Physics records, circa 1919-2002.

The Bancroft Library

University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA

Subject

Oral history interview with Owen Chamberlain, 1976.

The Bancroft Library

University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA

Published Resources

Author

Course in nuclear physics for engineers / by Carl Helmholz.

History of the Physics Department, University of California, Berkeley 1950-1968 / by August Carl Helmholz; edited by John David Jackson.

Mechanics [by] Charles Kittel, Walter D. Knight [and] Malvin A. Ruderman. Rev. by A. Carl Helmholz [and] Burton J. Moyer.

Subject

August Carl Helmholz Physics Today obituary.