University of Michigan. Department of Physics

See the historical sketch for the Dept. of Physics (University of Michigan) Records.

The first course in physics at the University of Michigan, entitled "Natural Philosophy," was taught in the Fall of 1843 by George Palmer Williams, Professor of Natural Philosophy and Mathematics. A Professor of Physics and Civil Engineering, Alexander Winchell, was appointed in January 1854. The first full Professor of Physics, James Craig Watson, was named in 1860.

The department began to take shape after the Physics Building (later called the West Physics Building and now known as West Hall) was built in 1888. Prior to that, at most one professor of physics existed at a time and classes took place in the North College or University Hall. Between 1890 and 1900, several instructors, assistant professors, and junior professors were appointed to the department.

Early interest in infrared spectroscopy, led by Harrison M. Randall in 1911, brought Michigan to the forefront as a research facility in physics. In the 1950s, research into infrared spectroscopy led to discovery of the principles behind fiber optics. Beginning in 1921, R.A. Sawyer and O.S. Duffendack accomplished substantial research in visible and ultraviolet spectroscopy. In 1932 discoveries by Dennison, Uhlenbeck, Cleeton, and Williams marked the beginning of microwave spectroscopy.

From 1915 to 1925 the department realized the need for systematization and interpretation of the large numbers of experiments being done. W.F. Colby consulted with researchers and led courses in theoretical physics to fill this need, thus beginning the Theoretical Physics program. The Summer Symposia in Physics began modestly in 1923. By 1928 its focus changed to Theoretical Physics and it became national and international in scope. Lecturers included P.A.M. Dirac, Enrico Fermi, Werner Heisenberg, Wolfgang Pauli, Neils Bohr, J.R. Oppenhiemer, H.A. Bethe, and Kasimir Fajans.

Since the 1920s the Applied Physics program has worked with other departments and research units toward practical applications of physics. Examples include an alliance with industrial organizations to reduce noise in automobiles, and a partnership with the Medical School to detect infrared measurements of amino acids.

The Nuclear Physics program was developed in the 1930s, led by the interest of Michigan theorists. Harrison M. Randall consulted with other programs at the University of California and the California Institute of Technology, as well as prominent physicists such as Enrico Fermi, when forming the program. The department hosted the Summer Symposia on Nuclear Physics in 1931 and later years to build international interest. In 1936 the department built a 36-inch cyclotron with the cooperation of the Medical School and with generous support from the Rackham Trust Fund. It was used for physics experiments as well as for medical research in leukemia and polycythemia. In 1939 the cyclotron was converted to 42 inches, and in 1962 it was replaced by an 83-inch cyclotron. In the 1970s the cyclotron was phased out due to federal cuts in nuclear research funding. Michigan gained prominence in accelerator development when the world's first electron synchrotron was built by the department beginning in 1946.

After World War II, interest developed in high energy physics. The department stood strongly in the area of particle detectors, most notably in the Nobel Prize-winning development by Donald Glaser of the Bubble Chamber in the 1950s.

As the department grew, it acquired new buildings. In 1923-24, the East Physics Building (now Randall Laboratory) was built for advanced research. In 1962-63, the ten-story Physics-Astronomy Building (Now the Dennison Building) was built to house the Physics-Astronomy Library, classrooms, and laboratories.

This history was excerpted from Zorn, J., ed. On the History of Physics at Michigan. Ann Arbor: Department of Physics, 1988. The Physics Department is planning to place this publication on their website: http://www.physics.lsa.umich.edu