Giulio Racah
Encyclopedia
Giulio Racah ( February 9, 1909, Florence
August 28, 1965, Florence) was an Italian
–Israel
i physicist
and mathematician
.
, Italy
, he took his degree
from the University there in 1930, and later studied in Rome
with Enrico Fermi
. In 1937 he was appointed Professor of Physics at the University of Pisa
. In 1939, due to application of Anti-Jewish laws in Italy, Racah immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine, and was appointed Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
, where he was later Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, and finally Rector
and acting President. The physics institute at the Hebrew University is named "Racah Institute of Physics".
Racah's research was mainly in the fields of quantum physics and atomic spectroscopy
. He first devised a systematic general procedure for classifying the energy levels of open shell atoms, which remains to this day the accepted technique for practical calculations of atomic structure. This formalism was described in a monograph coauthored by his cousin: Ugo Fano
(Irreducible Tensorial Sets, 1959).
The crater Racah
on the Moon
is named after him.
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
August 28, 1965, Florence) was an Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
–Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
.
Biography
Born in FlorenceFlorence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, he took his degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
from the University there in 1930, and later studied in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
with Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi was an Italian-born, naturalized American physicist particularly known for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, Chicago Pile-1, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
. In 1937 he was appointed Professor of Physics at the University of Pisa
University of Pisa
The University of Pisa , located in Pisa, Tuscany, is one of the oldest universities in Italy. It was formally founded on September 3, 1343 by an edict of Pope Clement VI, although there had been lectures on law in Pisa since the 11th century...
. In 1939, due to application of Anti-Jewish laws in Italy, Racah immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine, and was appointed Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
, where he was later Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, and finally Rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
and acting President. The physics institute at the Hebrew University is named "Racah Institute of Physics".
Racah's research was mainly in the fields of quantum physics and atomic spectroscopy
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
. He first devised a systematic general procedure for classifying the energy levels of open shell atoms, which remains to this day the accepted technique for practical calculations of atomic structure. This formalism was described in a monograph coauthored by his cousin: Ugo Fano
Ugo Fano
Ugo Fano was an Italian American physicist, a leader in theoretical physics in the 20th century.- Biography :Ugo Fano was born into a wealthy Jewish family in Turin, Italy...
(Irreducible Tensorial Sets, 1959).
See also
- Racah's symbol
- Racah's V-coefficient
- Racah's W-coefficientRacah W-coefficientRacah's W-coefficients were introduced by Giulio Racah in 1942. These coefficients have a purely mathematical definition. In physics they are used in calculations involving the quantum mechanical description of angular momentum, for example in atomic theory....
- Racah–Wigner calculus
- Racah parameterRacah parameterWhen an atom has more than one electron there will be some electrostatic repulsion between those electrons. The amount of repulsion varies from atom to atom, depending upon the number and spin of the electrons and the orbitals they occupy...
- Racah polynomialsRacah polynomialsIn mathematics, Racah polynomials are orthogonal polynomials named after Giulio Racah, as their orthogonality relations are equivalent to his orthogonality relations for Racah coefficients....
- List of Israel Prize recipients
The crater Racah
Racah (crater)
Racah is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies almost due south of the larger crater Daedalus, and lies across lunar longitude 180°W, i.e. the longitude that is diametrically opposite to the Earth...
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him.
External links
- Timeline (at Racah Institute of Physics at Hebrew University)
- http://www.google.com/moon/#lat=-13.603278&lon=-178.59375&zoom=7&apollo=&q=racahLink to Racah CraterRacah (crater)Racah is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies almost due south of the larger crater Daedalus, and lies across lunar longitude 180°W, i.e. the longitude that is diametrically opposite to the Earth...
on Google Moon]