- Albert Overhauser
Albert W. Overhauser (born
August 17 ,1925 inSan Diego, California ) is an Americanphysicist and member of the National Academy of Sciences. He is best known for his theory of dynamic nuclear polarization, also known as the Overhauser Effect.Overhauser attended high school in San Francisco at
Lick-Wilmerding High School and began hisundergraduate work at theUniversity of California, Berkeley in 1942. He interrupted his studies at the end ofWorld War II for a two year stint in theU.S. Navy Reserve, then returned to Berkeley to complete his education. In 1948 he received undergraduate degrees inphysics andmathematics , and in 1951 he received aPh.D. in physics.From 1951-1953 he was a post-doctoral student at the University of Illinois, where he developed an important theory on the transfer of spin polarization; once the theory had been confirmed and demonstrated by other scientists, it became known as the Overhauser Effect. He was on the faculty at
Cornell University from 1953-1958, and then left to join the research staff atFord Motor Company . Overhauser remained at Ford until 1973, when he joined the faculty atPurdue University . He is still at Purdue as the Stuart Distinguished Professor of Physics.Honors and awards
* Received
National Medal of Science , 1994
* Elected to the National Academy of Sciences, 1976
* Oliver E. Buckley Solid State Physics Prize, 1975
* Fellow of theAmerican Academy of Arts and Sciences
* Honorary Doctor of Laws degree fromSimon Fraser University , 1998
* Honorary Doctor of Science degree from theUniversity of Chicago , 1979
* Honorary Doctor of Science Degree fromPurdue University , 2005External links
* [http://www.physics.purdue.edu/about_us/history/Albert_W_Overhauser.shtml Biography from the Purdue Department of Physics]
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