Peter Theophil Riess (27 June 1804 – 22 October 1883) was a German physicist, known mostly for his work in electricity, particularly friction electricity, but also in the field of

electromagnetic induction Electromagnetic or magnetic induction is the production of an electromotive force, electromotive force (emf) across an electrical conductor in a changing magnetic field. Michael Faraday is generally credited with the discovery of induction in 1 ...

. In the latter work he developed two devices, the spark micrometer (sometimes called the Riess micrometer) and the Riess spiral coils, both of which were used by

Heinrich Hertz Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (; ; 22 February 1857 – 1 January 1894) was a German physicist who first conclusively proved the existence of the electromagnetic waves predicted by James Clerk Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism. Biography Heinri ...

in his experiments to prove the propagation of

electromagnetic waves In physics, electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a self-propagating wave of the electromagnetic field that carries momentum and radiant energy through space. It encompasses a broad spectrum, classified by frequency or its inverse, wavelength, ran ...

. Riess was the son of a wealthy jeweller in Berlin. He received his doctorate in 1831 from the University of Berlin. In the early years after graduation he stayed with his father who was ill and helped run the business. Even after his father died, he never sought an academic teaching position. However he was a fellow (Mitglied) of the Berlin Academy, the first Jewish member of that academy, and under its auspices, and within its journal, Riess published prolifically. He also published several books, as well as many articles in the

Annalen der Physik ''Annalen der Physik'' (English: ''Annals of Physics'') is one of the oldest scientific journals on physics; it has been published since 1799. The journal publishes original, peer-reviewed papers on experimental, theoretical, applied, and mathem ...

. Riess was a friend of most of the leading members of the Berlin intelligentsia of the period, and had interests in history, literature, art and music. He died in Berlin at age 79.

References

* 1804 births 1883 deaths 19th-century German physicists Scientists from Berlin Physicists from the Kingdom of Prussia {{Germany-academic-bio-stub

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