Abstract
Professor Alfred Otto Carl Nier has had a singular influence on the art and science of mass spectrometry over the last 55 years. I had the pleasure of conducting an oral history interview of Dr. Nier in the spring of 1989 at his office and laboratory at the University of Minnesota. I was assisted in this endeavor by Thomas Krick of the Biochemistry Department staff. The interview was underwritten by the American Society for Mass Spectrometry. The following highlights are excerpted from 10 1/2 hours of material recorded during the interview. The complete set of tapes, a full transcript, pictures, and other material collected during the interview are archived with the Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry in Philadelphia.
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Nier, A. O. Device to Compensate for Magnetic Field Fluctuations in a Mass Spectrograph: Rev. Sci. Inst. 1935, 6, 254.
Nier, A. O. Evidence for the Existence of an Isotope of Potassium of Mass 40; Phys. Rev. 1935, 48, 283.
Nier, A. O. A Mass Spectrographic Study of the Isotopes of Hg, Xe, Kr, Be, I, As, and Cs; Phys. Rev. 1937, 52, 933.
Nier, A. O. Variations in the Relative Abundances of the Isotopes of Common Lead from Various Sources; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1938, 60, 1571.
Nier, A. O. The Isotopic Constitution of Uranium and the Half-Lives of the Uranium Isotopes I; Phys. Rev. 1939, 55, 150.
Nier, A. O. The Isotopic Constitution of Radiogenic Leads and the Measurement of Geological Times II; Phys. Rev. 1939, 55, 153.
Gulbranson, E. A.; Nier, A. O. Variations in the Relative Abundance of the Carbon Isotopes; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1939, 61, 697.
Nier, A. O. The Isotopic Constitution of Chromium and Iron; Phys. Rev. 1939, 55, 1143.
Anderson, H. L. John Ray Dunning; Biographical Memoirs, National Academy of Sciences 1989, 58, 163.
Nier, A. O.; Booth, E. T.; Dunning, J. R.; Grosse, A. V. Nuclear Fission of Separated Uranium Isotopes; Phys. Rev. 1940, 57, 546.
Nier, A. O.; Booth, E. T.; Dunning, I. R.; Grosse, A. V. Further Experiments of Fission on Separated Uranium Isotopes; Phys. Rev. 1940, 57, 748.
Wood, H. G.; Werkman, C. H.; Hemingway, A.; Nier, A. O. Heavy Carbon as a Tracer in Heterotropic Carbon Dioxide Assimilation; J. Biol. Chem. 1941, 139, 365.
Wood, H. H.; Werkman, C. H.; Hemingway, A.: Nier, A. O. The Position of Carbon Dioxide Carbon in Succinic Acid Synthesized by Heterotrophic Bacteria; J. Biol. Chem. 1941, 139, 377.
Wood, H. G.; Werkman, C. H.; Hemingway, A.; Nier, A. O. Note on the Degradation of Propionic Acid Synthesized by Propionibacterium; Iowa St. Coll. J. Sci. 1941, 15, 213.
Slade, H. D.; Wood, H. G.; Nier, A. O.; Hemingway, A.; Werkman, C. H. Note on the Utilization of Carbon Dioxide by Heterotrophic Bacteria; Iowa St. Coll. J. Sci. 1941, 15, 339.
Wood, H. G.; Werkman, C. H.; Hemingway, A.; Nier, A. O. Mechanism of Fixation of Carbon Dioxide in the Krebs Cycle; J. Biol. Chem. 1941, 139, 483.
Wood, H. G.; Werkman, C. H.; Hemingway, A.; Nier, A. O.; Stuckwisch, C. G. Reliability of Reactions Used To Locate Assimilated Carbon in Propionic Acid; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1941, 63, 2140.
Olsen, N. S.; Hemingway, A.; Nier, A. O. The Metabolism of Glycine, I. Studies with the Stable Isotope of Carbon; J. Biol. Chem. 1943, 148, 611.
Nier, A. O.; Bardeen, J. The Production of Concentrated Carbon 13 by Thermal Diffusion; J. Chem. Phys. 1941, 9, 690.
Nier, A. O.; Stevens, C. M.; Hustrulid, A.; Abbott, T. A. Mass Spectrometer for Leak Detection; J. Appl. Phys. 1947, 18, 30.
Nier, A. O.; Abbott, T. A.; Pickard, J. K.; Leland, W. T.; Taylor, T. I.; Stevens, D. L.; Drukey, D. L.; Goertzel, G. Recording Mass Spectrometer for Process Analyses; Anal. Chem. 1948, 20, 188.
Johnson, E. G.; Nier, A. O. Angular Aberrations in Sector Shaped Electromagnetic Lenses for Focusing Beams of Charged Particles; Phys. Rev. 1953, 91, 10.
Nier, A. O. The Development of a High Resolution Mass Spectrometer: A Reminiscence; J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom. 1991, 2, 447.
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Grayson, M.A. Professor Al Nier and his influence on mass spectrometry. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 3, 685–694 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1016/1044-0305(92)87081-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/1044-0305(92)87081-9