Harold Max Rosenberg
Encyclopedia
Harold Max Rosenberg was a distinguished experimental physicist who is notable for two successful textbooks: Low Temperature Solid State Physics (1963) and The Solid State (1975) and over one hundred papers mainly about the electrical, thermal and mechanical properties of solids, especially at low temperatures.
, UK. He left school at 16 and went into the Civil Service in a clerical post. He volunteered and served throughout the war in the RAF working with radio equipment, which he had studied in his spare time. On demobilization he was given a further education, a training grant, and studied at University College London
(UCL). He graduated with a first class honours degree in physics from UCL, and then obtained a DPhil in 1953 from the University of Oxford
under Kurt Mendelssohn
.
founded Linacre College, Oxford
a graduate college, and subsequently, in 1970, a tutorial fellow of St Catherine's College, Oxford
.
Harry Rosenberg's initial research was in the area of metals, but in 1962 new phenomena associated with magnetism and the interaction between magnetism
and phonon
s (the quantized vibrations that store and transport heat in insulating as well as metallic solids) began to interest him. This occupied his attention for the next decade. Then, in 1972, he began the work on composite, disordered and amorphous materials that lasted until his retirement.
On his 60th birthday, in 1982, Rosenberg was gloomily contemplating the need to find a new topic of research to last until his retirement, when a note from an old colleague, Ray Orbach in California, showed that his experimental results on the low temperature properties of amorphous solid
s found a natural explanation in terms of the newly discovered mathematical theory of fractal
s, by now of course familiar through the strange and beautiful pictures that they generate.
This new approach to the interpretation of excitations in disordered solids was first expressed in the paper "Fractal interpretation of vibrational properties of cross-linked polymers, glasses and irradiated quartz," which, according to Orbach, was a very controversial piece of work, greeted with considerable skepticism.
Rosenberg was regarded as a gifted lecturer, not only to undergraduates and to colleagues at conferences,
but also to a much wider audience, both on the radio and on television.
, survived by his wife Mildred Anna and three daughters.
and received the Brazilian Order of Scientific Merit
.
Early Life & Education
Harry Rosenberg was the son of a small shopkeeper in East HamEast Ham
East Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...
, UK. He left school at 16 and went into the Civil Service in a clerical post. He volunteered and served throughout the war in the RAF working with radio equipment, which he had studied in his spare time. On demobilization he was given a further education, a training grant, and studied at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
(UCL). He graduated with a first class honours degree in physics from UCL, and then obtained a DPhil in 1953 from the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
under Kurt Mendelssohn
Kurt Mendelssohn
Kurt Alfred Georg Mendelssohn FRS was a German-born British medical physicist, elected a Fellow of the Royal Society 1951.He was a great-great-grandson of Saul Mendelssohn, the younger brother of philosopher Moses Mendelssohn...
.
Career
Six years later he became a university lecturer and in 1978 was appointed a Reader. He also became a fellow of the newlyfounded Linacre College, Oxford
Linacre College, Oxford
Linacre College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the UK, currently offering graduate entry only. It is located on St Cross Road at the corner of St Cross Road and South Parks Road, next to the University Parks and opposite the Tinbergen Building, which is shared by...
a graduate college, and subsequently, in 1970, a tutorial fellow of St Catherine's College, Oxford
St Catherine's College, Oxford
St Catherine's College, often called Catz, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its motto is Nova et Vetera...
.
Harry Rosenberg's initial research was in the area of metals, but in 1962 new phenomena associated with magnetism and the interaction between magnetism
Magnetism
Magnetism is a property of materials that respond at an atomic or subatomic level to an applied magnetic field. Ferromagnetism is the strongest and most familiar type of magnetism. It is responsible for the behavior of permanent magnets, which produce their own persistent magnetic fields, as well...
and phonon
Phonon
In physics, a phonon is a collective excitation in a periodic, elastic arrangement of atoms or molecules in condensed matter, such as solids and some liquids...
s (the quantized vibrations that store and transport heat in insulating as well as metallic solids) began to interest him. This occupied his attention for the next decade. Then, in 1972, he began the work on composite, disordered and amorphous materials that lasted until his retirement.
On his 60th birthday, in 1982, Rosenberg was gloomily contemplating the need to find a new topic of research to last until his retirement, when a note from an old colleague, Ray Orbach in California, showed that his experimental results on the low temperature properties of amorphous solid
Amorphous solid
In condensed matter physics, an amorphous or non-crystalline solid is a solid that lacks the long-range order characteristic of a crystal....
s found a natural explanation in terms of the newly discovered mathematical theory of fractal
Fractal
A fractal has been defined as "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is a reduced-size copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity...
s, by now of course familiar through the strange and beautiful pictures that they generate.
This new approach to the interpretation of excitations in disordered solids was first expressed in the paper "Fractal interpretation of vibrational properties of cross-linked polymers, glasses and irradiated quartz," which, according to Orbach, was a very controversial piece of work, greeted with considerable skepticism.
Rosenberg was regarded as a gifted lecturer, not only to undergraduates and to colleagues at conferences,
but also to a much wider audience, both on the radio and on television.
Death
He died on 21 November 1993, whilst on holiday in BrazilBrazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, survived by his wife Mildred Anna and three daughters.
Honors
He was a member of the Brazilian Academy of SciencesBrazilian Academy of Sciences
The Brazilian Academy of Sciences is the national academy of Brazil. It is headquartered in the city of Rio de Janeiro and was founded in 1916....
and received the Brazilian Order of Scientific Merit
Brazilian Order of Scientific Merit
The National Order of Scientific Merit is an honor bestowed upon Brazilian and foreign personalities recognized for their scientific and technical contributions to the cause and development of science in Brazil.-Biology:* Marcelo Hermes-Lima* Jorge Curi...
.
Books by Rosenberg
- Harold Max Rosenberg, The Solid-State, Oxford University Press (1975), ISBN 0198518323
- Harold Max Rosenberg, Low Temperature Solid State Physics, Oxford University Press (1963), ISBN 0198519109