John C. Slater
John Clarke Slater was an American physicist who advanced the theory of the electronic structure of atoms, molecules and solids. He also made major contributions to microwave electronics. He received a B.S. in physics from the University of Rochester in 1920 and a Ph.D. in physics from Harvard in 1923, then did post-doctoral work at the universities of Cambridge and Copenhagen. On his return to the U.S. he joined the physics department at Harvard.
In 1930, Karl Compton, the president of MIT, appointed Slater as chairman of MIT's department of physics. He recast the undergraduate physics curriculum, wrote 14 books between 1933 and 1968, and built a department of international prestige. During World War II, his work on microwave transmission, done partly at the Bell Laboratories and in association with the MIT Radiation Laboratory, was significant in the development of radar.
In 1950, Slater founded the Solid State and Molecular Theory Group within the physics department. The following year, he resigned the chairmanship of the department and spent a year at the Brookhaven National Laboratory of the Atomic Energy Commission.
In 1930, Karl Compton, the president of MIT, appointed Slater as chairman of MIT's department of physics. He recast the undergraduate physics curriculum, wrote 14 books between 1933 and 1968, and built a department of international prestige. During World War II, his work on microwave transmission, done partly at the Bell Laboratories and in association with the MIT Radiation Laboratory, was significant in the development of radar.
In 1950, Slater founded the Solid State and Molecular Theory Group within the physics department. The following year, he resigned the chairmanship of the department and spent a year at the Brookhaven National Laboratory of the Atomic Energy Commission.
