Hendrik Casimir
| Hendrik Casimir | |
|---|---|
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Hendrik "Henk" Brugt Gerhard Casimir (1909-2000)
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| Born |
July 15, 1909 The Hague, Netherlands |
| Died | May 4, 2000 (aged 90) Heeze, Netherlands |
| Residence | Netherlands |
| Nationality | Dutch |
| Fields | Physics |
| Institutions |
University of Leiden Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium |
| Alma mater | University of Leiden |
| Doctoral advisor | Paul Ehrenfest |
| Doctoral students | Hendrik Gerard van Bueren |
| Other notable students | Carolyne M. Van Vliet |
| Known for |
Casimir effect Casimir invariant Casimir pressure Casimir element |
| Notable awards |
Wilhelm Exner Medal (1985) Matteucci Medal (1985) |
Hendrik Brugt Gerhard Casimir ForMemRS (July 15, 1909 – May 4, 2000) was a Dutch physicist best known for his research on the two-fluid model of superconductors (together with C. J. Gorter) in 1934 and the Casimir effect (together with D. Polder) in 1948.
He studied theoretical physics at the University of Leiden under Paul Ehrenfest, where he received his Ph.D. in 1931. His Ph.D. thesis dealt with the quantum mechanics of a rigid spinning body and the group theory of the rotations of molecules. During that time he also spent some time in Copenhagen with Niels Bohr. After receiving his Ph.D. he worked as an assistant to Wolfgang Pauli at ETH Zurich. In 1938, he became a physics professor at Leiden University. At that time, he was actively studying both heat conduction and electrical conduction, and contributed to the attainment of millikelvin temperatures.
In 1942, during World War II, Casimir moved to the Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium (Philips Physics Laboratory, NatLab) in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. He remained an active scientist and in 1945 wrote a well-known paper on Lars Onsager's principle of microscopic reversibility. He became a co-director of Philips NatLab in 1946 and a member of the board of directors of the company in 1956. He retired from Philips in 1972.
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