Einstein was born in a Jewish family in Ulm, Germany (both parents were Jews). 1900 graduated from Swiss federal institute of technology in Zurich and became a Swiss citizen? [ 1-4]? . 1905, Einstein received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Zurich, put forward the photon hypothesis, and successfully explained the photoelectric effect (so he won the 192 1 Nobel Prize in physics)? [ 1-4]? ; In the same year, he founded the special theory of relativity; in 19 15, he founded the general theory of relativity; in 1933, he moved to the United States and worked in the Princeton Institute for Advanced Studies; in 1940, he became an American citizen while retaining Swiss nationality? [ 1-4]? . 1955 April 18, Einstein died in Princeton, New Jersey, USA at the age of 76? [ 1-4]? . 19965438+In February, Einstein was selected as the "century man" of the 20th century by American Time magazine.
Einstein's theory laid a theoretical foundation for the development of nuclear energy. With the help of Leo Szilard and others, he wrote a letter to President franklin roosevelt, which directly contributed to the start of the Manhattan Project. After World War II, he actively advocated peace and opposed the use of nuclear weapons, and signed the Russell-Einstein Declaration? [4-8]? . Einstein initiated a new era of modern science and technology and was recognized as the greatest physicist after Galileo and Newton.
The photoelectric effect was discovered by German physicist Hertz in 1887, and Einstein put forward a correct theoretical explanation. Einstein argued that the energy of light is not uniformly distributed, but is loaded on discrete light quanta, and the energy of photons is related to the frequency of the light it constitutes. This breakthrough theory can not only explain the photoelectric effect, but also promote the birth of quantum mechanics.
1905, Einstein put forward the photon hypothesis and successfully explained the photoelectric effect, so he won the 192 1 year Nobel Prize in Physics. ? [2]? [ 16]? [ 14]
The photoelectric effect can be divided into photoelectron emission, photoconductive effect and photovoltaic effect. The former phenomenon occurs on the surface of an object, which is also called external photoelectric effect. The latter two phenomena occur inside the object, which is called internal photoelectric effect. ? [ 14]
Hertz discovered the photoelectric effect in 1887, and Einstein was the first to successfully explain the photoelectric effect (the effect that a metal surface emits electrons under the action of light irradiation, and the emitted electrons are called photoelectrons). Only when the wavelength of light is less than a certain critical value can electrons be emitted, that is, the limit wavelength, and the corresponding frequency of light is called the limit frequency. The critical value depends on the metal material, and the energy of emitted electrons depends on the wavelength of light, which has nothing to do with the intensity of light and cannot be explained by the fluctuation of light. And the fluctuation of light is also contradictory, that is, the instantaneity of photoelectric effect. According to the fluctuation theory, if the incident light is weak and the irradiation time is long, the electrons in the metal can accumulate enough energy and fly out of the metal surface. But the fact is that as long as the frequency of light is higher than the limit frequency of metal, no matter the brightness of light, the generation of photons is almost instantaneous, no more than ten MINUS nine seconds. The correct explanation is that light must be composed of strictly defined energy units (i.e. photons or optical quanta) related to wavelength. ? [2]
In the photoelectric effect, the emission direction of electrons is not completely directional, but most of them are emitted perpendicular to the metal surface, regardless of the irradiation direction. Light is electromagnetic wave, but light is an orthogonal electromagnetic field with high frequency oscillation, and its amplitude is very small, which will not affect the emission direction of electrons. ? [ 14]
General relativity is a theory that describes the gravitational interaction between substances. Its foundation was completed by Einstein in 19 15 and officially published in 19 16. This theory first interprets the gravitational field as the curvature of space-time.
Einstein tried to bring the law of universal gravitation into the framework of relativity. After several failures, he finally realized that the special theory of relativity could not accommodate the law of gravity. Therefore, he extended the principle of special relativity to general relativity, and based on the principle that universal gravitation and inertial force are equivalent in local inertial system, he established the general relativity that describes gravitation with Riemann geometry of curved space-time.
1907, Einstein wrote a long article about the special theory of relativity, "On the Principle of Relativity and Its Conclusions". In this article, Einstein mentioned the principle of equivalence for the first time, and since then, Einstein's thoughts on the principle of equivalence have been developing continuously. Based on the natural law that the inertial mass is directly proportional to the gravitational mass, he proposed that the uniform gravitational field in an infinitely small volume can completely replace the frame of reference for accelerating motion. Einstein also put forward the view of closed box: no matter what method is used, the observer in closed box can't be sure whether he is still in the gravitational field or in the accelerating space without gravitational field. This is the most commonly used viewpoint to explain the equivalence principle, and the equality of inertial mass and gravitational mass is the natural inference of the equivalence principle. ? [ 14]
1915438+01In June, Einstein submitted four papers to the Prussian Academy of Sciences. In these four papers, he put forward a new viewpoint, proved the precession of Mercury's perihelion, and gave the correct gravitational field equation. At this point, the basic problems of general relativity have been solved, and general relativity was born.
19 16 years, Einstein finished his long paper "The Basis of General Relativity". In this article, Einstein first called the theory of relativity that once applied to the inertial system as special relativity, and called the principle that only the physical laws of the inertial system are the same as the principle of special relativity as special relativity, and further expressed the principle of general relativity: for any moving reference system, the physical laws must be established. ? [ 14]
Significance of relativity: Special relativity and general relativity have been established for a long time. It has stood the test of practice and history and is a recognized truth. Relativity has a great influence on the development of modern physics and modern human thought. Relativity logically unifies classical physics and makes it a perfect scientific system. On the basis of the principle of special relativity, special relativity unifies Newton's mechanics and Maxwell's electrodynamics, pointing out that both of them obey the principle of special relativity and are covariant to Lorentz transformation, while Newton's mechanics is only a good approximate law of low-speed motion of objects. On the basis of generalized covariation, general relativity establishes the relationship between local inertia length and universal reference coefficient through equivalence principle, obtains the generalized covariant forms of all physical laws, and establishes the generalized covariant gravity theory, and Newton's gravity theory is only its first-order approximation. This fundamentally solved the problem that physics was limited to inertial system in the past, and got a reasonable arrangement in logic. Relativity strictly examines the basic concepts of physics such as time, space, matter and motion, and gives the time-space view and material view of scientific system, thus making physics a perfect scientific system logically. ? [ 14]
Special relativity gives the law of high-speed motion of objects, and puts forward that mass and energy are equivalent, and gives the relationship between mass and energy. These two achievements are not obvious to macroscopic objects moving at low speed, but they are extremely important in the study of microscopic particles. Because the speed of microscopic particles is generally relatively fast, and some of them are close to or even reach the speed of light, the physics of particles cannot be separated from relativity. The mass-energy relationship not only creates the necessary conditions for the establishment and development of quantum theory, but also provides the basis for the development and application of nuclear physics. ? [ 14]
At that time, most physicists on earth, including Lorenz, the founder of relativistic transformation relation, found it difficult to accept these new concepts introduced by Einstein. Some people even said that "at that time, only two and a half people in the world understood the theory of relativity". The obstacle of the old way of thinking makes this new physical theory not familiar to physicists until a generation later. Even in 1922, when the Swedish Academy of Royal Sciences awarded Einstein the Nobel Prize in Physics, it just said, "Because of his contribution to theoretical physics, but also because he discovered the law of photoelectric effect." Einstein's Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded, but Einstein's theory of relativity was not mentioned. (Note: Relativity didn't win the Nobel Prize. One of the important reasons is the lack of a large number of facts. )? [ 14]
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