Robert Coleman Richardson (June 26, 1937 – February 19, 2013) was an American

experimental physicist Experimental physics is the category of disciplines and sub-disciplines in the field of physics that are concerned with the observation of physical phenomena and experiments. Methods vary from discipline to discipline, from simple experiments and o ...

whose area of research included sub-millikelvin

temperature Temperature is a physical quantity that quantitatively expresses the attribute of hotness or coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer. It reflects the average kinetic energy of the vibrating and colliding atoms making ...

studies of

helium-3 Helium-3 (3He see also helion) is a light, stable isotope of helium with two protons and one neutron. (In contrast, the most common isotope, helium-4, has two protons and two neutrons.) Helium-3 and hydrogen-1 are the only stable nuclides with ...

. Richardson, along with David Lee, as senior researchers, and then graduate student Douglas Osheroff, shared the 1996

Nobel Prize in Physics The Nobel Prize in Physics () is an annual award given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for those who have made the most outstanding contributions to mankind in the field of physics. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the ...

for their 1972 discovery of the property of

superfluid Superfluidity is the characteristic property of a fluid with zero viscosity which therefore flows without any loss of kinetic energy. When stirred, a superfluid forms vortex, vortices that continue to rotate indefinitely. Superfluidity occurs ...

ity in helium-3 atoms in the

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

Laboratory of Atomic and Solid State Physics. Richardson was born in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

He went to high school at Washington-Lee in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

. He later described Washington-Lee's biology and physics courses as "very old-fashioned" for the time. "The idea of 'advanced placement' had not yet been invented," he wrote in his Nobel Prize autobiography. He took his first calculus course when he was a sophomore in college. Richardson attended

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

and received a B.S. in 1958 and a M.S. in 1960. He received his PhD from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

in 1965.

Background

At the time of his death, he was the Floyd Newman Professor of Physics at

, although he no longer operated a laboratory. From 1998 to 2007 he served as Cornell's vice provost for research, and from 2007 to 2009 was senior science adviser to the president and provost. His past experimental work focused on using

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a physical phenomenon in which nuclei in a strong constant magnetic field are disturbed by a weak oscillating magnetic field (in the near field) and respond by producing an electromagnetic signal with a ...

to study the quantum properties of liquids and solids at extremely low temperatures. Richardson was an Eagle Scout, and mentioned the Scouting activities of his youth in the biography he submitted to the Nobel Foundation at the time of his award. Richardson claimed that he did not believe in an anthropomorphic God, but it is unclear what specific beliefs he held.

Personal life

Richardson was born to Robert Franklin Richardson, a telephone engineer. He married Betty Marilyn McCarthy, a fellow physics PhD student from Duke, on 29 Sep 1962 at the Immaculate Conception Catholic church in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

Awards and honors

* Simon Memorial Prize (1976) *

Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize The Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize is an annual award given by the American Physical Society "to recognize and encourage outstanding theoretical or experimental contributions to condensed matter physics." It was endowed by AT&T Bell Labor ...

(1981) *

(1996) *Golden Plate Award of the

American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a nonprofit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest-achieving people in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet one ano ...

(1997) *Elected member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

(2001)

References

External links

Cornell webpage

Freeview video Interview with Robert Richardson by the Vega Science Trust
* Obituaries *

** ** ** * including the Nobel Lecture, December 7, 1996 ''The Pomeranchuk Effect''
J. D. Reppy and D. M. Lee, "Robert C. Richardson", Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences (2015)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, Robert Coleman 1937 births 2013 deaths American Nobel laureates Cornell University faculty Cornell Laboratory of Atomic and Solid State Physics Duke University alumni Duke University faculty American experimental physicists Nobel laureates in Physics Virginia Tech alumni Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize winners Members of the American Philosophical Society Washington-Liberty High School alumni

Background

Personal life

Awards and honors

See also

References

External links