Joan Maie Freeman (7 January 1918 – 18 March 1998) was an Australian physicist.

Biography

Joan Maie Freeman was born in

Perth, Australia Perth () is the capital city of Western Australia. It is the fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The world's most isolated major city by certain criteria, Perth is part of the ...

on 7 January 1918. Her family moved to Sydney in 1922 and she attended the Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School. While still a girl, she took evening classes at

Sydney Technical College The Sydney Technical College, now part of TAFE NSW, is a technical school established in 1878, that superseded the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts. The college is one of Australia's oldest technical education institutions. History The Sydney M ...

. The school hid her attendance from inspectors, as they thought a girl in the class would reflect negatively on the college. She completed her Intermediate Certificate Examination and earned a place at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

in 1936. Freeman studied mathematics, chemistry, physics and zoology, and was often the only woman, indeed the school stipulated that a seat had to be left vacant between women and men in a lecture hall). She received her BSc in 1940 and was awarded a Commonwealth Research Scholarship to continue her MSc (awarded 1943), along with other prizes.

Career

Freeman took a position at the Radiophysics Laboratory of the

Council for Scientific and Industrial Research A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...

as a research officer in June 1941. She researched radar during World War II. After the war ended, Freeman engaged in research on the behaviour of low-pressure gas discharges at microwave frequencies. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research then awarded her a Senior Studentship that allowed her to read for her PhD at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in England. She attended

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

and later studied short-range alpha particles with Alex Baxter, working on the HT1 accelerator. In 1951 Freeman became Senior Scientific Officer at the Harwell Tandem Accelerator Group. She later led the group and received the Ernest Rutherford Medal and Prize in 1976 with Roger Blin-Stoyle, for their research of the beta-radioactivity of complex nuclei. She was the first woman to win the ''Ernest Rutherford Medal and Prize''. She received an honorary doctorate from Sydney University and fellowships from the

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based not-for-profit learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, physics research, research and applied physics, application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide ...

and the

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of ...

. She retired reluctantly from the Atomic Energy Research Establishment in 1978, due to their policies on retirement age, but continued as a consultant. Freeman was posthumously appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the

1999 Australia Day Honours The 1999 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 1999 by the Governor General of Australia, Sir William Deane. The Austr ...

for "service to science in the field of nuclear physics and to the environment as an advocate for social responsibility in scientific research". Freeman wrote the 1991 book ''A Passion for Physics''. Freeman married John Jelley in 1958. She died in Oxford on 18 March 1998.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Joan Maie 20th-century Australian physicists 1918 births 1998 deaths Australian women physicists Officers of the Order of Australia Fellows of the American Physical Society Fellows of the Institute of Physics University of Sydney alumni Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge 20th-century Australian women scientists People educated at Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School Australian expatriates in England People from Perth, Western Australia

Biography

Career

See also

References