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Institutional History
AbstractDepartment chairsImportant DatesPlacesSubjectsRelationships
PeopleInstitutionsResources
Archival as AuthorArchival as SubjectUniversity of California, Los Angeles. Department of Physics
Dates
1919 – present
Authorized Form of Name
University of California, Los Angeles. Department of Physics
Additional Forms of Names
UCLA. Department of Physics
University of California, Los Angeles. Department of Physics and Astronomy
University of California, Los Angeles. Dept. of Physics
Institutional History
Abstract
The Physics Department dates from the opening of the Southern Branch of the University of California in 1919. Classes were taught by John Mead Adams, the only physics professor, William Crowell of the Chemistry Department and George E. F. Sherwood of the Mathematics Department. By 1925, when the first bachelor degrees were awarded, the faculty had grown to six professors. Graduate courses were first offered in 1934 and in 1936 the department was authorized to award the Ph.D. in Physics.
Department chairs
1919-26, John Mead Adams.
1926-31, Samuel J. Barnett.
1932-38, Vern O. Knudsen.
1938-43, Joseph Kaplan.
1944-49, Joseph Ellis.
1949-59, Edgar Lee Kinsey.
1959-63, Leo Delsasso.
1963-68, David Saxon.
1968-71, Harold Ticho.
1971-73, Philip Pincus.
1973-76, Kenneth MacKenzie.
1976-79, George J. Igo.
1979-83, Ernest Abers.
1983-86, Charles Kennel.
1986-unknown, Joseph Rudnick.
unknown-2004, Claudio Pellegrini.
2004-2006, Joseph Rudnick.
2006-2009, Ferdinand Coroniti.
2009-2014, James Rosenzweig.
2014-present, Jean Turner.
Important Dates
1919Department founded by John Mead Adams, William Crowell (chemistry) and George E. F. Sherwood (mathematics), Berkeley (Calif.).
1923First upper division lecture courses were added.
1924First upper division laboratories were added.
1925First bachelor's degrees were awarded.
1933Graduate work began.
1934Regular graduate classes leading to the master's degree were offered.
1940First Ph.D. degree in physics was awarded.
1948 – 1950James Fletcher was on faculty.
1948 – 1987Isadore Rudnick was on faculty.
1960 – 1963Richard Brewer was on faculty.
1963Second building was completed, known as Knudsen Hall, and the original building was renamed Kinsey Hall.
1965 – 1985Theodore Holstein was on faculty.
1967 – 1996Charles Kennel was on faculty.
1969 – 1994Francis Chen was on faculty.
1972 – 1983Paul Chaikin was on faculty.
1972 – 1994Julian Schwinger was on faculty.
1973 – 2001John Dawson was on faculty.
1975 – 1978James Drake was on faculty.
1985 – 1986John Wheatley was on faculty.
1989 – 2004Steven Kivelson was on faculty.
1991 – 1993Marvin "Murph" Goldberger was on faculty.
2000 – presentC. Kumar N. Patel has been on faculty.
Places
Headquarters
Subjects
Physics -- Study and teaching.
Relationships
People
Employees & Officers
Abers, Ernest S. (Ernest Stephen), 1936-
Department chair.
Adams, John Mead, 1882-
Co-founder of department and first department professor and chair.
Barnett, S. J. (Samuel Jackson), 1873-1956
Department chair.
Assistant Professor.
Assistant Professor of Physics, Associate Professor of Physics, and Professor of Physics.
Professor of Physics.
Coroniti, Ferdinand V.
Department chair.
Crowell, William Ransom, 1879-
Co-founder of department.
Dawson, J. M. (John Myrick), 1930-
Professor of Physics; Director, Center for Plasma Physics and Fusion Energy.
Delsasso, Leo
Department chair.
Obtained BS, MS, PhD in 1975 (Physics), Adjunct Assistant Professor, and Assistant Research Physicist.
Ellis, Joseph W.
Department chair.
Fletcher, James Chipman, 1919-1991
Instructor.
Professor of Physics.
Visiting Professor.
Holstein, Theodore David, 1915-1985
Professor of Physics.
Igo, George J., 1925-
Department chair.
Kaplan, Joseph A., 1902-1991
Department chair.
Associate Professor of Physics; Professor of Physics; and Chair, Department of Physics.
Kinsey, Edgar Lee
Department chair.
Instructor, summer sessions.
Professor of Physics.
Knudsen, Vern Oliver, 1893-1974
Department chair.
MacKenzie, Kenneth Ross
Department chair.
Professor of Physics.
Pincus, P. A.
Department chair.
Rosenzweig, J. (Jamie)
Department chair.
BA (1938) and PhD (1944); Assistant Professor to Associate Professor of Physics; and Professor of Physics.
Rudnick, Joseph Alan, 1944-
Department chair.
Saxon, David S.
Department chair.
Visiting Professor; Professor of Physics; and University Professor.
Sherwood, G. E. F. (George Eulas Foster), 1883-
Co-founder of department.
Ticho, Harold Klein, 1921-
Department chair.
Turner, J. L. (Jean Lewin)
Department chair.
Professor of Physics and President's Chair.
Associates & Members
Abell, George O. (George Ogden), 1927-1983
Aller, Lawrence H. (Lawrence Hugh), 1913-2003
Arakawa, Akio
Atac, Muzaffer, 1933-2010
Benson, Arthur J.
Casperson, Lee W. (Lee Wendel), 1944-
Obtained BS.
Dodd, Laurence Ellsworth, 1886-
Doell, Richard Rayman
Obtained MSc.
Farquhar, Robert W. (Robert Willard)
Gales, R. S.
Hakkarinen, C.
Hammett, Louis P. (Louis Plack), 1894-1987
Hayes, D. S. (Donald S.)
Hinzpeter, Hans
Kasahara, Akira
Kivelson, M. G. (Margaret Galland), 1928-
Knopoff, Leon, 1925-
Kolin, Alexander
Received MS.
Leonard, Robert W. (Robert Walton)
Libby, Willard F.
MacDonald, Gordon J. (Gordon James), 1929-2002
Naugle, John E.
Reaves, Gibson, 1923-2005
Sakurai, J. J. (Jun John), 1933-1982
Seaborg, Glenn T. (Glenn Theodore), 1912-1999
Obtained AB (1934).
Siegman, A. E.
Vasilevskis, Stanislaus, 1907-1988
Wilhelms, Don E.
Received BA (1965).
Institutions
Institutional Hierarchy
University of California, Los Angeles
White Mountain Research Station (University of California, Los Angeles)
A unit of the University of California Natural Reserve System, and the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability.
Collaborators
American Institute of Physics. Center for History of Physics
Worked together on the Study of Multi-institutional Collaborations.
Resources
Archival Resources
Author
Program for dedication of E. Lee Kinsey and Vern O. Knudsen Hall, 1964.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
UCLA Department of Physics administrative files of the department chairs, 1923-1987.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
UCLA Department of Physics records, 1919-1992.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
University of California, Los Angeles Physics Department publications, 1950-1989.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Subject
Alexander Kolin papers, 1929-1990.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Arthur J. Benson papers, 1904-1994 (bulk 1935-1994).
Hillman Library. Archives of Scientific Philosophy in the Twentieth Century
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
Gibson Reaves astronomy notebooks, 1943-1949.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Isadore Rudnick papers, circa 1945-1988.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
J. J. Sakurai papers, 1950-1982.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
John M. Dawson papers, circa 1956-1995.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Joseph Kaplan papers, circa 1940-1978.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Laurence Ellsworth Dodd papers, 1919-1975.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Lee W. Casperson response to Laser History Project Survey, 1983.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Muzaffer Atac papers, 1961-2008.
History and Archives Project Office, MS-109
Fermilab
PO Box 500, Batavia, IL 90510, USA
Oral history interview with Akio Arakawa, 1997 July 17 and 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Akira Kasahara, 1998 November 2 and 3.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Anthony Edward Siegman, 1984 January 23 and 1986 August 19.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Charles "Chuck" Hakkarinen, 2013 February 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Don E. Wilhelms, 1987 June 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Donald S. Hayes, 1977 November 13.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with George Ogden Abell, 1977 November 14.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Gordon J. MacDonald, 1986 April 16.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Hans Hinzpeter, 1995 Spring.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Isadore Rudnick, 1990 July 3.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with John E. Naugle, 1980 August 20.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Jule G. Charney, 1980 August 25, 26, 27 and 28.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Lawrence H. Aller, 1979 August 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Leon Knopoff, 1990 April 27.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Louis Plack Hammett, 1978 May 1 and 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Margaret G. Kivelson, 1988-1992. But you don't look like a physicist: oral history transcript, 1988-1992 Margaret G. Kivelson interviewed by Neil D. Hathaway and Raymond J. Walker.
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA
Oral history interview with Richard Doell, 1978 April 17, 26, and 28.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Robert Farquhar, 2007 November 15, 29, 2008 February 27 and July 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Robert S. Gales, 2000 March 31.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Stanislaus Vasilevskis, 1977 July 13 and 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Vern Oliver Knudsen, 1964 May 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Vern Oliver Knudsen, 1966 December 20 to 1969 June 3.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Oral history interview with Willard F. Libby, 1978.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Oral history interview with Willard Frank Libby, 1979 April 12 and 16.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with William Shockley, 1974 September 10.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interviews. Space Science: International Sun-Earth Explorer (ISEE), 1992-1994.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Robert Walton Leonard papers, 1928-1967 (bulk 1955-1964).
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Theodore D. Holstein papers, 1940-1990 (bulk 1965-1986).
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Berkeley
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
University of California President : David S. Saxon : oral history transcript / interviewed by James V. Mink and Dale E. Treleven ; completed under the auspices of the Oral History Program, University of California, Los Angeles, 1994.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
White Mountain Research Station administrative files, 1949-1996.
Mandeville Special Collections Library
University of California, San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA