Hertha Sponer
Encyclopedia
Hertha Sponer was a German
physicist
and chemist
who contributed to modern quantum mechanics and molecular physics and was the first woman on the physics faculty of Duke University
.
, Prussian Silesia, and obtained her high school degree in Neisse. She spent a year at the University of Tübingen after which she enrolled at the University of Göttingen where she received her Ph.D in 1920 under the supervision of Peter Debye. During her time at the University of Tübingen she was an assistant of James Franck
. In 1921 she, along with a few others, was among the first women to obtain a Ph.D. in Physics in Germany along with the right to teach science at a German University. In October 1925 she received a Rockefeller Foundation
fellowship to stay at University of California, Berkeley
, where she remained for a year. During her time at Berkeley, she collaborated with R. T. Birge
, developing what is now called the Birge-Sponer method for determining dissociation energies.
By 1932 Sponer had published around 20 scientific papers in journals such as Nature
and Physical Review
, and had become an associate professor of physics. In 1933 James Franck resigned and left Göttingen and a year later she was dismissed from her position when Hitler came to power, due to the Nazi's stigma against females in academia. In 1934 Sponer moved to Oslo
to teach at the University of Oslo
as a visiting professor, and in 1936 she started her appointment at Duke University
where she remained as a professor until 1966 when she became Professor Emeritus, a position she held until her death in 1968.
During her academic career, Sponer conducted research in quantum mechanics, physics, and chemistry. She authored and published numerous studies, many of which were in collaboration with famous physicists including Edward Teller
. She made many contributions to science including the application of quantum mechanics to molecular physics and work on the spectra of near ultra-violet absorption. She set up a spectroscopy
lab in the physics department of Duke University, which was later moved to its own new building.
Sponer married James Franck
in 1946. She died in Ilten, Lower Saxony
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
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 chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
who contributed to modern quantum mechanics and molecular physics and was the first woman on the physics faculty of Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
.
Life and career
Sponer was born in Neisse (Nysa)Nysa, Poland
Nysa is a town in southwestern Poland on the Nysa Kłodzka river with 47,545 inhabitants , situated in the Opole Voivodeship. It is the capital of Nysa County. It comprises the urban portion of the surrounding Gmina Nysa, a mixed urban-rural commune with a total population of 60,123 inhabitants...
, Prussian Silesia, and obtained her high school degree in Neisse. She spent a year at the University of Tübingen after which she enrolled at the University of Göttingen where she received her Ph.D in 1920 under the supervision of Peter Debye. During her time at the University of Tübingen she was an assistant of James Franck
James Franck
James Franck was a German Jewish physicist and Nobel laureate.-Biography:Franck was born to Jacob Franck and Rebecca Nachum Drucker. Franck completed his Ph.D...
. In 1921 she, along with a few others, was among the first women to obtain a Ph.D. in Physics in Germany along with the right to teach science at a German University. In October 1925 she received a Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
fellowship to stay at University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, where she remained for a year. During her time at Berkeley, she collaborated with R. T. Birge
Raymond Thayer Birge
Raymond Thayer Birge was a physicist. Born in Brooklyn, New York, into an academic scientific family, Birge obtained his Doctor's Degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1913. In the same year he married Irene A. Walsh. The Birges had two children, Carolyn Elizabeth Raymond Thayer...
, developing what is now called the Birge-Sponer method for determining dissociation energies.
By 1932 Sponer had published around 20 scientific papers in journals such as Nature
Nature (journal)
Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
and Physical Review
Physical Review
Physical Review is an American scientific journal founded in 1893 by Edward Nichols. It publishes original research and scientific and literature reviews on all aspects of physics. It is published by the American Physical Society. The journal is in its third series, and is split in several...
, and had become an associate professor of physics. In 1933 James Franck resigned and left Göttingen and a year later she was dismissed from her position when Hitler came to power, due to the Nazi's stigma against females in academia. In 1934 Sponer moved to Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
to teach at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
as a visiting professor, and in 1936 she started her appointment at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
where she remained as a professor until 1966 when she became Professor Emeritus, a position she held until her death in 1968.
During her academic career, Sponer conducted research in quantum mechanics, physics, and chemistry. She authored and published numerous studies, many of which were in collaboration with famous physicists including Edward Teller
Edward Teller
Edward Teller was a Hungarian-American theoretical physicist, known colloquially as "the father of the hydrogen bomb," even though he did not care for the title. Teller made numerous contributions to nuclear and molecular physics, spectroscopy , and surface physics...
. She made many contributions to science including the application of quantum mechanics to molecular physics and work on the spectra of near ultra-violet absorption. She set up a 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...
lab in the physics department of Duke University, which was later moved to its own new building.
Sponer married James Franck
James Franck
James Franck was a German Jewish physicist and Nobel laureate.-Biography:Franck was born to Jacob Franck and Rebecca Nachum Drucker. Franck completed his Ph.D...
in 1946. She died in Ilten, Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
.
Selected publications
- "Inelastic Impacts of Electrons with Mercury Atoms," Zeits. f. Physik, 7.3: 185 (1921).
- "The Series Spectra of Lead and Tin," Zeits. f. Physik, 32.1: 19 (1925).
- "Predissociation Spectra of Triatomic Molecules," Zeits. f. Physik pp. 18: 88 (1932) with J. Franck and E. Teller.
- "Analysis of Near U.V. Electronic Transition of Benzene," J.Chem.. Phys. 7: 207 (1939) with L. Nordheim, A. L. Sklar, and E. Teller.