Georgii Nikolayevich Flyorov (also spelled Flerov,
rus, Гео́ргий Никола́евич Флёров, p=gʲɪˈorgʲɪj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ ˈflʲɵrəf; 2 March 1913 – 19 November 1990) was a Soviet
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
who is known for his discovery of
spontaneous fission
Spontaneous fission (SF) is a form of radioactive decay in which a heavy atomic nucleus splits into two or more lighter nuclei. In contrast to induced fission, there is no inciting particle to trigger the decay; it is a purely probabilistic proc ...
and his important contribution towards the
crystallography
Crystallography is the branch of science devoted to the study of molecular and crystalline structure and properties. The word ''crystallography'' is derived from the Ancient Greek word (; "clear ice, rock-crystal"), and (; "to write"). In J ...
and
material science
A material is a substance or mixture of substances that constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties, or on their geol ...
, for which, he was honored with many awards.
In addition, he is also known for his letter directed to
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
, during the midst of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, to start a
program of nuclear weapons in the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
.
In 2012, element 114 was named
flerovium after the research laboratory at the
Joint Institute for Nuclear Research bearing his name.
Biography
Flyorov was born on 2 March 1913 in
Rostov-on-Don in
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. His grandfather was a priest in the
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...
—his mother was
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
.
After finishing schooling in 1929, he was trained as a
mechanic and later as an electrician, first working as a technician at the
Kirov Plant.
In 1933–34, he was able to attend the
Leningrad Polytechnic Institute (now known as the
Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University), and
earned a specialist degree from the Polytechnic Institute in physics under
Abram Ioffe
Abram Fedorovich Ioffe ( rus, Абра́м Фёдорович Ио́ффе, p=ɐˈbram ˈfʲɵdərəvʲɪtɕ ɪˈofɛ; – 14 October 1960) was a prominent Soviet Union, Soviet physicist. He received the USSR State Prize, Stalin Prize (1942), the ...
's group in 1939.
He found employment at the
Ioffe Institute (then known as LFTI) and worked under
Igor Kurchatov.
Initially he worked with
Mikhail Rusinov in fission applications in 1939 but discovered
spontaneous fission
Spontaneous fission (SF) is a form of radioactive decay in which a heavy atomic nucleus splits into two or more lighter nuclei. In contrast to induced fission, there is no inciting particle to trigger the decay; it is a purely probabilistic proc ...
in 1940 with
Konstantin Petrzhak in 1940.
He is known for writing to
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
in April 1942 as a lieutenant in the
Soviet Air Forces
The Soviet Air Forces (, VVS SSSR; literally "Military Air Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics"; initialism VVS, sometimes referred to as the "Red Air Force") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Sovie ...
and pointing out the conspicuous silence within the field of
nuclear fission
Nuclear fission is a reaction in which the nucleus of an atom splits into two or more smaller nuclei. The fission process often produces gamma photons, and releases a very large amount of energy even by the energetic standards of radioactiv ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Flyorov's urgings to "build the uranium bomb without delay" eventually led to the development of the
Soviet atomic bomb project
The Soviet atomic bomb project was authorized by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union to develop nuclear weapons during and after World War II.
Russian physicist Georgy Flyorov suspected that the Allied powers were secretly developing a " superwea ...
.
In the 1970s, he claimed as his discovery two
transition metal
In chemistry, a transition metal (or transition element) is a chemical element in the d-block of the periodic table (groups 3 to 12), though the elements of group 12 (and less often group 3) are sometimes excluded. The lanthanide and actinid ...
elements:
seaborgium
Seaborgium is a synthetic chemical element; it has symbol Sg and atomic number 106. It is named after the American nuclear chemist Glenn T. Seaborg. As a synthetic element, it can be created in a laboratory but is not found in nature. It is als ...
and
bohrium.
[Original Russian version]
.
He founded the
Flyorov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions (FLNR), one of the main laboratories of the
Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in
Dubna
Dubna ( rus, Дубна́, p=dʊbˈna) is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It has a status of '' naukograd'' (i.e. town of science), being home to the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, an international nuclear physics research center and o ...
in 1957, and was director there until 1989. Also during this period, he chaired the Scientific Council of the
Soviet Academy of Sciences.
Honours and awards
*
Hero of Socialist Labour
The Hero of Socialist Labour () was an Title of honor, honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It represented the highest degree of distinction in the USSR and was awarded for exceptional achievem ...
(1949)
* Two
Orders of Lenin (1949, 1983)
*
Order of the October Revolution
The Order of the October Revolution (, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on 31 October 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferred upon individuals or groups for services furthering communis ...
(1973)
*
Order of the Red Banner of Labour, three times (1959, 1963, 1975)
*
Order of the Patriotic War
The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...
, 1st class (1985)
*
Lenin Prize (1967)
*
Stalin Prize, twice (1946, 1949)
*
Marian Smoluchowski Medal (1974)
*
USSR State Prize (1975)
* Honorary Citizen of
Dubna
Dubna ( rus, Дубна́, p=dʊbˈna) is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It has a status of '' naukograd'' (i.e. town of science), being home to the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, an international nuclear physics research center and o ...
* The element
flerovium (
atomic number
The atomic number or nuclear charge number (symbol ''Z'') of a chemical element is the charge number of its atomic nucleus. For ordinary nuclei composed of protons and neutrons, this is equal to the proton number (''n''p) or the number of pro ...
114) named after him in 2012
References
External links
Significant Flerov DatesAnnotated bibliography of Georgy Flerov from the Alsos Digital LibraryA draft of Flerov's letter to Stalin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flyorov, Georgy Nikolayevich
Soviet Jewish physicists
Soviet nuclear physicists
Soviet inventors
Full Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences
People involved with the periodic table
Heroes of Socialist Labour
Recipients of the Order of Lenin
Recipients of the Lenin Prize
Recipients of the Stalin Prize
Recipients of the USSR State Prize
1913 births
1990 deaths
Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery
Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University alumni
Soviet military personnel of World War II
Soviet Air Force officers
Russian scientists