Gerhard Herzberg

Biography

Abstract

Gerhard Herzberg was a physical chemist at the National Research Council of Canada. He was awarded the 1971 Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his contributions to the knowledge of electronic structure and geometry of molecules, particularly free radicals."

Important Dates

December 25, 1904Birth, Hamburg (Germany).

1928Obtained Dr.Ing in Physics, Technische Universität Darmstadt (Darmstadt Institute of Technology), Darmstadt (Germany).

1928Awarded Müller-Alewyn-Plakette Medal.

1928 – 1930Post-doctoral fellow, Universität Göttingen (University of Göttingen).

1930Privatdozent (Lecturer) of Physics and Senior Assistant, Technische Universität Darmstadt (Darmstadt Institute of Technology).

1935 – 1945Professor, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon (Sask.).

1939Fellow, Royal Society of Canada.

1945 – 1948Professor of Spectroscopy, Yerkes Observatory, University of Chicago, Chicago (Ill.).

1948 – 1994Principal Research Officer (1948-1955) and Director, Division of Pure Physics (1955-1969), National Research Council Canada, Ottawa-Carleton (Ont.).

1951Fellow, Royal Society.

1953Awarded Henry Marshall Tory Medal, Royal Society of Canada.

1954Honorary Fellow, National Academy of Sciences, India.

1956 – 1957President, Canadian Association of Physicists.

1957 – 1963Vice President, International Union of Pure and Applied Physics.

1959Awarded Medal of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy.

1959 – 1960Chair Francqui, Université de Liège.

1960Bakerian Lecturer, Royal Society.

1962Awarded Spectroscopy Award, Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh.

1963Twelfth Spiers Memorial Lecture, Faraday Society.

1964Academician, Pontificia Accademia delle scienze (Pontifical Academy of Sciences).

1964Honorary Member, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia (Hungarian Academy of Sciences).

1964Awarded Frederic Ives Medal, Optical Society of America.

1965Foreign Honorary Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

1966 – 1967President, Royal Society of Canada.

1968George Fischer Baker Non-Resident Lecturer in Chemistry, Cornell University.

1968Honorary Fellow, Optical Society of America.

1968Honorary Fellow, Royal Society of Chemistry.

1969Awarded Willard Gibbs Medal, American Chemical Society.

1969Honorary Member, Society of Applied Spectroscopy.

1970Awarded Faraday Medal and Lecturer, Royal Society of Chemistry.

1971Awarded Linus Pauling Medal, American Chemical Society.

1971Awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his contributions to the knowledge of electronic structure and geometry of molecules, particularly free radicals".

1971Awarded Royal Medal, Royal Society.

1972Foreign Member, American Philosophical Society.

Occupation

Molecular structures and physical chemist.

Places

Birth

Hamburg (Germany)

Graduate Education

Darmstadt (Germany)

Employment

Saskatoon (Sask.)

Chicago (Ill.)

Death

Ottawa-Carleton (Ont.)

Subjects

Electronic structure.

Molecular structure.

Physical chemistry.

Relationships

People

Family

Herzberg, Luise Oettinger

Wife.

Advisors & Collaborators

Born, Max, 1882-1970

PhD advisor at University of Göttingen.

Franck, James, 1882-1964

PhD advisor at Universität Göttingen (University of Göttingen).

Oka, T. (Takeshi)

Advised by Herzberg at National Research Council Canada.

Phillips, John G. (John Gardner), 1917-

Advised by Herzberg at University of Chicago.

Rao, K. Narahari

Advised by Herzberg at University of Chicago.

Rau, Hans

PhD advisor at Technische Universität Darmstadt (Darmstadt Institute of Technology).

Schneider, William G.

Advised by Herzberg at University of Saskatchewan.

Stoicheff, B. P. (Boris P.)

Advised by Herzberg at National Research Council Canada.

Taube, Henry, 1915-2005

Advised by Herzberg at University of Saskatchewan.

Colleagues

Chamberlain, Joseph W. (Joseph Wyan), 1928-2004

Both employed at Yerkes Observatory.

Henyey, Louis G., 1910-1970

Both employed at Yerkes Observatory.

Additional

Fajans, Kasimir, 1887-1975

Hund, Friedrich, 1896-1997

Kolos, Wlodzimierz

Landé, Alfred, 1888-

Mulliken, Robert Sanderson

Münch, Guido, 1921-

Shenstone, A. G. (Allen Goodrich)

Spinks, J. W. T. (John William Tranter), 1908-1997

Struve, Otto, 1897-1963

Wu, Ta-you

Institutions

Major Positions

Cornell University. Department of Chemistry

George Fischer Baker Non-Resident Lecturer in Chemistry

National Research Council of Canada

Principal Research Officer and Director, Division of Pure Physics.

Royal Society (Great Britain)

Fellow; Bakerian Lecturer; Awarded 1971 Royal Medal.

Royal Society of Chemistry (Great Britain)

Honorary Fellow; awarded 1970 Faraday Medal.; Lecturer.

Technische Hochschule Darmstadt

Obtained Dr.Ing in Physics (1928) and Privatdozent (Lecturer) of Physics and Senior Assistant.

University of Saskatchewan

Professor.

Yerkes Observatory

Professor of Spectroscopy.

Professional Activities & Affiliations

American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Foreign Honorary Member.

American Chemical Society

Awarded 1969 Willard Gibbs Medal and 1971 Linus Pauling Medal.

American Philosophical Society

Foreign Member.

Canadian Association of Physicists

President.

Faraday Society

Gave Twelfth Spiers Memorial Lecture.

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics

Vice President.

Magyar Tudományos Akadémia

Honorary Member.

National Academy of Sciences, India

Honorary Fellow.

Optical Society of America

Awarded 1964 Frederic Ives Medal. Honorary Fellow.

Pontificia Accademia delle scienze

Academician.

Royal Society of Canada

President; Fellow; awarded 1953 Henry Marshall Tory Medal.

Society for Applied Spectroscopy

Honorary Fellow. Awarded 1959 Medal of Society of Applied Spectroscopy.

Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh

Awarded 1962 Spectroscopy Award.

Universität Göttingen

Post-doctoral Fellow.

Université de Liège

Chair Francqui.

Resources

Archival Resources

Author

Gerhard Herzberg collection, 1971.

Leo Baeck Institute at the Center for Jewish History

15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011, USA

Gerhard Herzberg fonds, 1928-1997.

Manuscript Division

Library and Archives Canada

395 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Oral history interview with Gerhard Herzberg, 1989 February 28 and 1 March.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Gerhard Herzberg: 1986 May 5.

The Beckman Center for History of Chemistry

Chemical Heritage Foundation

315 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2702, USA

Subject

Alfred Landé autograph collection, 1919-1973.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Boris P. Stoicheff papers, 1950-2008.

University Archives

University of Toronto

120 St. George St., Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A5, Canada

Files of Wlodzimierz Kolos.

Archiwum (Warszawa)

Polska Akademia Nauk

Nowy Świat 72, 00-330 Warsaw, Poland

General interest session [sound recording]/ 1972 April 26.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Kasimir Fajans papers, 1912-1975.

Bentley Historical Library

University of Michigan

Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2113, USA

Letters to National Bureau of Standards staff on "Atomic Energy Levels," 1949-1971.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Friedrich Hund, 1963 June 25 and 26.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Guido Münch, 1977 July 7.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Robert S. Mulliken, 1964 February 1.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Ta-You Wu, 1977 February 5.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interviews with physicists.

Institute for Scientific and Technical Information, Physics Branch

National Research Council of Canada

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Otto Struve selected correspondence [microform], 1932-1945.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Symposium in honor of Allen G. Shenstone on the occasion of his retirement [sound recording]/ 1962 June 16.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Published Resources

Author

Atomic spectra and atomic structure, by Gerhard Herzberg. Translated with the co-operation of the author by J. W. T. Spinks.

Atomspektren und atomstruktur: eine einführung für chemiker, physiker und physikochemiker, / von dr. Gerhard Herzberg ... Mit 79 abbildungen und 21 tabellen.

Molecular spectra and molecular structure. Volume 3, Electronic spectra and electronic structure of polyatomic molecules/ by Gerhard Herzberg.

Molecular spectra and molecular structure/ by Gerhard Herzberg, with the co-operation, in the 1st ed., of J.W.T. Spinks.

Molekülspektren und molekülstruktur/ von dr. Gerhard Herzberg.

The spectra and structures of simple free radicals; an introduction to molecular spectroscopy.

Subject

Gerhard Herzberg Encyclopaedia Britannica

Gerhard Herzberg Nobel Prize BiographyHerzberg

Gerhard Herzberg Physics Today obituary.

Gerhard Herzberg: an illustrious life in science/ Boris Stoicheff.