Skip to main content
Book cover
  • Book
  • © 2019

Establishing Quantum Physics in Göttingen

David Hilbert, Max Born, and Peter Debye in Context, 1900-1926

Authors:

  1. Arne Schirrmacher

    1. Institut für Geschichtswissenschaften, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

  • Sheds new light on the emergence of Göttingen as the Mecca of physics in the 1920s

  • Offers a contextual perspective on quantum mechanics complementing purely conceptual narratives

  • Shows how a history of resources and research politics enriches the history of science in general

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in History of Science and Technology (BRIEFSHIST)

Sections

eBook USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-3-030-22727-2
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Softcover Book USD 69.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
Learn about institutional subscriptions

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-ix
    PDF

  7. Appendix: Selected Documents

    • Arne Schirrmacher
    Pages 95-106

  8. Back Matter

    Pages 107-120
    PDF
Back to top

About this book

Quantum mechanics – the grandiose theory that describes nature down to the submicroscopic level – was first formulated in Göttingen in 1925. How did this come about and why is it that Göttingen became the pre-eminent location for a revolution in physics? This book is the first to investigate the wide range of factors that were pivotal for quantum physics to be established in Göttingen. These include the process of generational change of physics professors, the hopes of mathematicians seeking new fields of research, and a new understanding of the interplay of experiment, theory and philosophy.

The other books in the four-volume collection address the beginnings of quantum physics research at Copenhagen, Berlin, and Munich. These works emerged from an expansive study on the quantum revolution as a major transformation of physical knowledge undertaken by the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science and the Fritz Haber Institute (2006–2012).
For more on this project, see the dedicated Feature Story, The Networks of Early Quantum Theory, at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-story/networks-early-quantum-theory.
Back to top

Keywords

  • history of quantum mechanics
  • David Hilbert
  • Max Born
  • Werner Heisenberg
  • Peter Debye
  • birth of quantum theory
  • Göttingen university
Back to top

Reviews

“The new view about the beginnings of quantum mechanics and the rich collection of documents make it worthwhile to study this book.” (Rita Meyer-Spasche, Isis, Vol. 112 (3), September, 2021)
Back to top

Authors and Affiliations

  • Institut für Geschichtswissenschaften, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Arne Schirrmacher

Back to top

About the author

After earning a PhD in theoretical physics, Arne Schirrmacher specialized in the history of science, in particular the history of modern physics, popular science and science museums. He was a researcher at the Deutsches Museum in Munich for many years and now works as a Heisenberg Fellow at the Humboldt University in Berlin.

 

Back to top

Bibliographic Information

Back to top
Access via your institution
eBook USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-3-030-22727-2
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Softcover Book USD 69.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
Learn about institutional subscriptions