Back Michael Faraday Afrikaans Michael Faraday ALS ማይክል ፋራደይ Amharic Michael Faraday AN Maiken Faraday ANN مايكل فاراداي Arabic مايكل فاراداي ARY مايكل فاراداى ARZ মাইকেল ফেৰাডে Assamese Michael Faraday AST
Michael Faraday | |
|---|---|
 Faraday, c. 1850s | |
| Born | 22 September 1791 Newington Butts, Surrey, England |
| Died | 25 August 1867 (aged 75) |
| Known for |
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| Spouse |
Sarah Barnard (m. 1821) |
| Awards |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | |
| Institutions | Royal Institution |
| 1st Fullerian Professor of Chemistry | |
| In office 1833–1867 | |
| Succeeded by | William Odling |
| Signature | |
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Michael Faraday (/ˈfærədeɪ, -di/; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English chemist and physicist who contributed to the study of electrochemistry and electromagnetism. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, and electrolysis. Although Faraday received little formal education, as a self-made man, he was one of the most influential scientists in history.[1] It was by his research on the magnetic field around a conductor carrying a direct current that Faraday established the concept of the electromagnetic field in physics. Faraday also established that magnetism could affect rays of light and that there was an underlying relationship between the two phenomena.[2][3] He similarly discovered the principles of electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, and the laws of electrolysis. His inventions of electromagnetic rotary devices formed the foundation of electric motor technology, and it was largely due to his efforts that electricity became practical for use in technology.[4] The SI unit of capacitance, the farad, is named after him.[5]
As a chemist, Faraday discovered benzene, investigated the clathrate hydrate of chlorine, invented an early form of the Bunsen burner and the system of oxidation numbers, and popularised terminology such as "anode", "cathode", "electrode" and "ion". Faraday ultimately became the first and foremost Fullerian Professor of Chemistry at the Royal Institution, a lifetime position.
Faraday was an experimentalist who conveyed his ideas in clear and simple language. His mathematical abilities did not extend as far as trigonometry and were limited to the simplest algebra. Physicist and mathematician James Clerk Maxwell took the work of Faraday and others and summarised it in a set of equations which is accepted as the basis of all modern theories of electromagnetic phenomena. On Faraday's uses of lines of force, Maxwell wrote that they show Faraday "to have been in reality a mathematician of a very high order – one from whom the mathematicians of the future may derive valuable and fertile methods."[6]
A highly principled scientist, Faraday devoted considerable time and energy to public service. He worked on optimising lighthouses and protecting ships from corrosion. With Charles Lyell, he produced a forensic investigation on a colliery explosion at Haswell, County Durham, indicating for the first time that coal dust contributed to the severity of the explosion, and demonstrating how ventilation could have prevented it.[7] Faraday also investigated industrial pollution at Swansea, air pollution at the Royal Mint, and wrote to The Times on the foul condition of the River Thames during The Great Stink.[8] He refused to work on developing chemical weapons for use in the Crimean War, citing ethical reservations. He declined to have his lectures published, preferring people to recreate the experiments for themselves, to better experience the discovery, and told a publisher: "I have always loved science more than money & because my occupation is almost entirely personal I cannot afford to get rich."[9]
Albert Einstein kept a portrait of Faraday on his study wall, alongside those of Isaac Newton and James Clerk Maxwell.[10] Physicist Ernest Rutherford stated, "When we consider the magnitude and extent of his discoveries and their influence on the progress of science and of industry, there is no honour too great to pay to the memory of Faraday, one of the greatest scientific discoverers of all time."[1]
- ^ a b Rao, C.N.R. (2000). Understanding Chemistry. Universities Press. ISBN 81-7371-250-6. p. 281.
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 173–175. the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.
- ^ "Archives Michael Faraday biography – The IET". theiet.org.
- ^ "The Faraday cage: from Victorian experiment to Snowden-era paranoia". The Guardian. 22 May 2017.
- ^ "Lecture notes: Capacitance and Dieletrics" (PDF). University of New South Wales. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 February 2009.
- ^ Maxwell, James Clerk (2003). Niven, W. D. (ed.). The Scientific Papers of James Clerk Maxwell, Vol. II. Dover Publications. ISBN 978-0-486-49561-3.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Explosionswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Timeswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Smithwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "How British scientists inspired and ensured Einstein's place in history". BBC Science. Retrieved 3 May 2024.