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Table of Contents

Biography

AbstractImportant DatesOccupationPlacesSubjects

Relationships

PeopleInstitutions

Resources

Archival as AuthorArchival as SubjectPublished as AuthorPublished as Subject

Robert F. Bacher

Photo

Dates

August 31, 1905 – November 18, 2004

Authorized Form of Name

Bacher, Robert F. (Robert Fox), 1905-2004

Additional Forms of Names

Bacher, Robert, 1905-2004

Bacher, Robert F.

Bacher, Robert F., 1905-2004

Biography

Abstract

Robert Bacher was an American nuclear physicist and one of the leaders of the Manhattan Project. During his career, Bacher was a director of the Laboratory of Nuclear Studies at Cornell and vice president and provost at the California Institute of Technology.

Important Dates

August 31, 1905Birth, Loudonville (Ohio).

1926Obtained BS, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Mich.).

1930Obtained PhD, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Mich.).

1930 – 1931National Research Fellow in Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena (Calif.).

1931 – 1932National Research Fellow in Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

1932 – 1933Lloyd Fellow, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Mich.).

1934 – 1935Instructor in Physics, Columbia University.

1935 – 1949Instructor to Professor of Physics and Director, Nuclear Studies Laboratory (defunct), Cornell University, Ithaca (N.Y.).

1941 – 1945Researcher, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Radiation Laboratory.

1943 – 1945Head, Experimental Physics Division (1943-1944) and Head, Bomb Physics Division, Los Alamos Laboratory (1944-1945), Manhattan Project, Los Alamos (N.M.).

1946Member, Board of Trustees, Associated Universities, Inc.

1946 – 1949Science Adviser to the United States Representative, United Nations.

1946 – 1949Commissioner, United States Atomic Energy Commission.

1947Member, National Academy of Sciences.

1949 – 2004Professor of Physics (1949-1976); Chair, Division of Physics Mathematics and Astronomy (1949-1962); Provost (1962-1970); and Emeritus Professor of Physics (1976-2004), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena (Calif.).

1950 – 1960Member, Board of Trustees, RAND Corporation.

1953 – 1956Member, Science Advisory Committee, United States Office of Defense Mobilization.

1957 – 1959Member, President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC).

1957 – 1962Member, Naval Research Advisory Committee, United States Navy.

1959 – 1976Member, Board of Trustees, Carnegie Corporation.

1962 – 1966Member, Board of Trustees, Associated Universities, Inc.

1964President, American Physical Society.

1965 – 1975Member, Board of Trustees (1965-1975); Chair, Board of Trustees (1970-1973); and Acting President (1973-1974), Universities Research Association, Washington (D.C.).

1970 – 1973Member, Board of Trustees, Associated Universities, Inc.

1971 – 1988Member, Board of Fellows, Claremont University Center.

November 18, 2004Death, Montecito (Calif.).

Occupation

Nuclear physicist.

Places

Birth

Loudonville (Ohio)

Undergraduate Education

Ann Arbor (Mich.)

Graduate Education

Ann Arbor (Mich.)

Employment

Ithaca (N.Y.)

Los Alamos (N.M.)

Pasadena (Calif.)

Washington (D.C.)

Death

Montecito (Calif.)

Subjects

Cyclotrons.

Neutron resonance.

Nuclear physics.

Nuclear weapons.

World War, 1939-1945.

Relationships

People

Family

Bacher, Andrew Dow

Son.

Bacher, Jean

Wife

Advisors & Collaborators

Bethe, Hans A. (Hans Albrecht), 1906-2005

Both employed at Cornell University and co-wrote "Nuclear physics" and "Seminal articles on nuclear physics."

Goudsmit, Samuel A. (Samuel Abraham), 1902-1978

Ph.D. advisor at University of Michigan "Zeeman effect of the hyperfine structure of atomic levels," and co-wrote "Atomic energy states, as derived from the analyses of optical spectra."

Livingston, M. Stanley (Milton Stanley)

Both employed at Cornell University and co-wrote "Nuclear physics" and "Seminal articles on nuclear physics."

McDaniel, Boyce D. (Boyce Dawkins), 1917-

Advised by Bacher at Cornell University, "The absorption of slow neutrons by indium," and both employed at Cornell University.

Colleagues

Adelberger, Eric G.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Alvarez, Luis W., 1911-1988

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Anderson, Carl D. (Carl David), 1905-1991

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Bahcall, John N.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

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

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Bateman, Harry, 1882-1946

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Boehm, Felix

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Bowman, J. D. (J. David)

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Brown, Harold, 1927-2019

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Christy, Robert F.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Cole, Julian D.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Compton, K. T. (Karl Taylor), 1887-1954

Both employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Corson, Dale R.

Both employed at Cornell University.

Courant, Ernest D. (Ernest David), 1920-

Both employed at Cornell University.

Critchfield, Charles Louis, 1910-

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Dashen, Roger F.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Davis, Bergen, 1869-1958

Both employed at Columbia University.

Dryden, Hugh L. (Hugh Latimer), 1898-1965

Both worked at United States Office of Defense Mobilization.

DuBridge, Lee A. (Lee Alvin), 1901-1994

Both employed at California Institute of Technology and and worked at United States Office of Defense Mobilization.

DuMond, Jesse W. M. (Jesse William Monroe), 1892-1976

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Dunning, John R. (John Ray), 1907-1975

Both employed at Columbia University.

Dyson, Freeman J.

Both employed at Cornell University.

Eisenstein, James P. (James Philip)

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Epstein, Paul S. (Paul Sophus), 1883-1966

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Everhart, Thomas E.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Fermi, Enrico, 1901-1954

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Feynman, Richard P. (Richard Phillips), 1918-1988

Both employed at Cornell University and California Institute of Technology.

Fowler, William A.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Freedman, Daniel Z.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Frisch, Otto Robert, 1904-

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Froman, Darol K. (Darol Kenneth), 1906-1997

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Furry, W. H. (Wendell Hinkle), 1907-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Gates, S. James

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Gell-Mann, Murray

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Glashow, Sheldon L.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Glauber, Roy J., 1925-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Goldberger, Marvin L.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Gould, Roy W. (Roy Walter), 1927-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Greisen, Kenneth

Both employed at Cornell University.

Hellwarth, Robert Willis, 1930-2021

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Higinbotham, William A.

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Holdren, John P.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Houston, W. V. (William Vermillion), 1900-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Kaspi, Victoria Michelle, 1967-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Kerst, Donald William, 1911-1993

Both employed at Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Killian, T. J. (Thomas Joseph), 1905-

Both employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Kimble, H. Jeff (Harry Jeffrey), 1949-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Kistiakowsky, George B. (George Bogdan), 1900-1982

Both worked on President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC).

Koonin, Steven E.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Krumhansl, J. A. (James A.)

Both employed at Cornell University.

Kryder, Mark H.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Lange, Andrew

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Laporte, Otto, 1902-1971

Both employed at University of Michigan.

Lauritsen, Charles Christian, 1892-1968

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Lauritsen, Thomas, 1915-1973

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Leighton, Robert B.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Mack, Julian Ellis, 1903-1966

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Manley, John Henry, 1907-

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

McKee, Christopher, 1942-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

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

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Merritt, Ernest, 1865-1948

Both employed at Cornell University.

Millikan, Clark Blanchard, 1903-1966

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Millikan, Robert Andrews, 1868-1953

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Montroll, E. W.

Both employed at Cornell University.

Morrison, Philip

Both employed at Cornell University.

Morse, Philip M. (Philip McCord), 1903-1985

Both employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Neddermeyer, Seth H. (Seth Henry), 1907-1988

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Oddone, Piermaria J.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Oppenheimer, J. Robert, 1904-1967

Both employed at California Institute of Technology and Los Alamos Laboratory, the Manhattan Project.

Parratt, Lyman G. (Lyman George)

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Pegram, George Braxton, 1876-1958

Both employed at Columbia University.

Politzer, H. David, 1949-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Purcell, Edward M.

Both worked on President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC).

Rabi, I. I. (Isidor Isaac), 1898-1988

Both employed at Columbia University.

Randall, Harrison M. (Harrison McAllister), 1870-

Both employed at University of Michigan.

Robertson, H. P. (Howard Percy), 1903-1961

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Rossi, Bruno, 1905-1993

Both employed at Cornell University and the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Schwarz, John H.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Sciulli, Frank J.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Segrè, Emilio

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Slater, John C. (John Clarke), 1900-1976

Both employed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Slichter, Louis B. (Louis Byrne), 1896-1978

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Spitzer, Frank, 1926-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Staub, Hans H.

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Stratton, Julius Adams, 1901-1994

Both employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Tape, Gerald Frederick, 1915-2005

Both employed at Cornell University.

Teukolsky, Saul A. (Saul Arno), 1947-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Thorne, Kip S.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Tollestrup, Alvin

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Tolman, Richard C. (Richard Chace), 1881-1948

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Trilling, George H.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Tsuei, Chang C.

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Van de Graaf, Robert Jemison, 1901-1967

Both employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Von Kármán, Theodore, 1881-1963

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Waterman, Alan Tower, 1892-1967

Both worked at United States Office of Defense Mobilization.

Wiesner, Jerome B. (Jerome Bert), 1915-1994

Both worked on President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC).

Will, Clifford M., 1946-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Williams, John H. (John Harry), 1908-

Both employed at the Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Wilson, Robert R., 1914-2000

Both employed at Cornell University and Los Alamos Laboratory, Manhattan Project.

Wilson, Robert Woodrow, 1936-

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Wu, Theodore Y.-T. (Theodore Yao-tsu)

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

York, Herbert F. (Herbert Frank)

Both worked on President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC).

Zacharias, Jerrold Reinach, 1905-1986

Both worked on President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC) and United States Office of Defense Mobilization.

Zweig, George

Both employed at California Institute of Technology.

Additional

Bohr, Niels, 1885-1962

Cranberg, Lawrence, 1917-

Dennison, David M. (David Mathias), 1900-1976

Dirac, P. A. M. (Paul Adrien Maurice), 1902-1984

Fisk, James B. (James Brown), 1910-1981

Groueff, Stephane

Larson, Clarence E. (Clarence Edward), 1909-

Lawrence, Ernest Orlando, 1901-1958

Marshak, Robert E. (Robert Eugene), 1916-1992

Sands, Matthew L. (Matthew Linzee)

Smith, Cyril Stanley, 1903-1992

Starr, Chauncey

Tombrello, Thomas A.

Uhlenbeck, George Eugène, 1900-1988

Whaling, Ward, 1923-

Wheeler, John Archibald, 1911-2008

Institutions

Major Positions

California Institute of Technology

Provost.

California Institute of Technology. Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy

National Research Fellow in Physics; Professor of Physics; Chair, Division of Physics Mathematics and Astronomy; and Emeritus Professor of Physics.

Columbia University. Department of Physics

Instructor in Physics.

Cornell University. Department of Physics

Instructor to Professor of Physics and Director, Nuclear Studies Laboratory.

Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory

Head, Experimental Physics Division and Head, Bomb Physics Division, Manhattan Project.

Manhattan Project (U.S.)

Head, Experimental Physics Division and Head, Bomb Physics Division, Los Alamos Laboratory.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Radiation Laboratory

Researcher.

Professional Activities & Affiliations

American Physical Society

President.

Associated Universities, Inc.

Member, Board of Trustees.

Carnegie Corporation of New York

Member, Board of Trustees.

Claremont University Center

Member, Board of Fellows.

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics

National Research Fellow in Physics.

National Academy of Sciences (U.S.)

Member.

Rand Corporation

Member, Board of Trustees.

U.S. Atomic Energy Commission

Commissioner.

United Nations

Science Adviser to the United States Representative.

United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration

United States. Navy

Member, Naval Research Advisory Committee.

United States. President's Science Advisory Committee

Member.

United States. Science Advisory Committee

Member.

Universities Research Association (U.S.)

Acting President; Member, Board of Trustees; and Chair, Board of Trustees.

University of Michigan. Department of Physics

Obtained BS in 1926, PhD in 1930, and Lloyd Fellow.

Resources

Archival Resources

Author

Lawrence Cranberg papers, 1962-2000.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Manhattan Project videohistory collection [videorecording], 1987-1990.

Archives

Smithsonian Institution

Capital Gallery, Suite 3000, MRC 507, 600 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20024-2520, USA

National Air and Space Museum Rand History Project oral history interviews, 1985-1990.

Archives Division

Smithsonian Institution. National Air and Space Museum

MRC 322, Washington, DC, 20560, USA

Oral History interview with Robert F. Bacher, 1966 June 30.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral History interview with Robert F. Bacher, 1981, 1983.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Oral History interview with Robert F. Bacher, 1986 February 13.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Robert F. Bacher papers, 1924-1994.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Subject

Brookhaven National Laboratory interview transcripts, 1966-1986.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Charles C. Lauritsen papers, 1927-1977 (bulk 1946-1973).

Institute Archives

Institute Archives

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Clarence E. Larson science and technology oral history collection, 1983-1993.

Special Collections & Archives

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA 22030-4444, USA

Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists records, 1946-1951.

The Joseph Regenstein Library. Department of Special Collections

University of Chicago

1100 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA

Informal moments, Summer Symposia at the University of Michigan [motion picture] / taken by David Dennison ; 1933-1937.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Keck Telescope papers, dates unknown.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Lee A. DuBridge papers, 1932-1986.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Murray Gell-Mann papers, 1931-2001 (bulk 1955-1993).

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Oral history interview with Charles Christian Lauritsen, 1966 June 27.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Cyril Stanley Smith, 1976 September 23.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Cyril Stanley Smith, 1976 September 23. Metallurgy and atomic energy policy: typescript (photocopy), 1980.

The Bancroft Library

University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA, 94720-6000, USA

Oral history interview with Hans Bethe, 1982, 1993.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Oral history interview with John Archibald Wheeler, 1967 April 5.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Lee A. DuBridge, Parts I and II, 1981.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Oral history interview with Matthew L. Sands, 1987 May 4 and 5.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Robert Benjamin Leighton, 1977 July 29 and August 5.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Robert Marshak, 1970 June 15, 16, September 19, and October 4.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Samuel Abraham Goudsmit, 1963 December 5 and 7.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Samuel Goudsmit 1976 May 7.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Oral history interview with Thomas Tombrello, 2010 December 26-31.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

Oral history interview with Ward Whaling, 1999 April-May.

Institute Archives

California Institute of Technology

1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

President's Science Advisory Committee records, 1957-1961.

Library

Dwight D. Eisenhower Library

Abilene, KS 67410, USA

Rochester Conference on High Energy Nuclear Physics proceedings, 1952 and 1955.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Samuel A. Goudsmit papers, 1921-1979.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Stephane Groueff papers, 1955-1975

Mugar Library Special Collections

Boston University

771 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA

U.S. Atomic Energy Commission records (Record Group 326), 1923-1975.

Office of the National Archives

National Archives and Records Administration

8th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20408, USA

William A. Higinbotham response to 1981 History of Nuclear Physics Survey, 1982.

Niels Bohr Library & Archives

American Institute of Physics

One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA

Published Resources

Author

Atomic energy states, as derived from the analyses of optical spectra / compiled by Robert F. Bacher, and Samuel Goudsmit.

Basic Bethe : seminal articles on nuclear physics, 1936-1937 / by Hans A. Bethe, Robert F. Bacher, M. Stanley Livingston ; preface by Hans A. Bethe ; introduction by Roger H. Stuewer.

Nuclear physics / by H. A. Bethe, R. F. Bacher [and] M. Stanley Livingston. Excerpts from Reviews of modern physics: v.8,no.2, April 1936; v.9,no.2, April 1937; v.9,no.3, July 1937.

Subject

Robert Fox Bacher Physics Today obituary.