Émile Léonard Mathieu (; 15 May 1835, in
Metz
Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...
– 19 October 1890, in
Nancy) was a French
mathematician
A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...
.
He is known for his work in
group theory
In abstract algebra, group theory studies the algebraic structures known as group (mathematics), groups.
The concept of a group is central to abstract algebra: other well-known algebraic structures, such as ring (mathematics), rings, field ( ...
and
mathematical physics
Mathematical physics is the development of mathematics, mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The ''Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the de ...
. He has given his name to the
Mathieu functions,
Mathieu group
In group theory, a topic in abstract algebra, the Mathieu groups are the five sporadic simple groups ''M''11, ''M''12, ''M''22, ''M''23 and ''M''24 introduced by . They are multiply transitive permutation groups on 11, 12, 22, 23 or 24 objec ...
s and
Mathieu transformation. He authored a treatise of mathematical physics in 6 volumes.
Volume 1 is an exposition of the techniques to solve the
differential equations of mathematical physics,
and contains an account of the applications of
Mathieu functions to
electrostatics
Electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies slow-moving or stationary electric charges.
Since classical antiquity, classical times, it has been known that some materials, such as amber, attract lightweight particles after triboelectric e ...
.
Volume 2 deals with
capillarity
Capillary action (sometimes called capillarity, capillary motion, capillary rise, capillary effect, or wicking) is the process of a liquid flowing in a narrow space without the assistance of external forces like Gravitation, gravity.
The effe ...
. Volumes 3 and 4 deal with
electrostatics
Electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies slow-moving or stationary electric charges.
Since classical antiquity, classical times, it has been known that some materials, such as amber, attract lightweight particles after triboelectric e ...
and
magnetostatics
Magnetostatics is the study of magnetic fields in systems where the electric currents, currents are steady current, steady (not changing with time). It is the magnetic analogue of electrostatics, where the electric charge, charges are stationary ...
.
Volume 5 deals with
electrodynamics
In physics, electromagnetism is an interaction that occurs between particles with electric charge via electromagnetic fields. The electromagnetic force is one of the four fundamental forces of nature. It is the dominant force in the interacti ...
, and volume 6 with
elasticity. The
asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...
27947 Emilemathieu was named in his honour.
Early life
Émile Mathieu was born into a family of minor civil servants. His father, Nicolas Mathieu, was a cashier at the Tax Office of the city. His mother, Amélie Antoinette Aubertin, was from Metz while her brother, Pierre Aubertin, the uncle of our mathematician, had attended the École Polytechnique, was a colonel of artillery and the director of a foundry which made cannons. Émile Mathieu was brought up in Metz, and he attended school at the Lycée de Metz in that town. He excelled at school, first in classical studies showing remarkable abilities in Latin and Greek compositions. However, once he had met mathematics when he was in his teenage years, it became the only subject which he wanted to pursue. We mentioned above that his uncle Pierre Aubertin had studied at the École Polytechnique and he advised Émile on preparing himself for the entrance examinations which he took successfully in 1854.
Books by Émile Mathieu
Traité de physique mathématique (6 vols.)(Gauthier-Villars, 1873-1890)
Dynamique Analytique(Gauthier-Villars, 1878)
References
External links
*
19th-century French mathematicians
1835 births
1890 deaths
École Polytechnique alumni
Group theorists
{{France-mathematician-stub