Robert Millikan
Robert Millikan was born in Morrison, Illinois. He lived from 1868-1953. (1)
Millikan determined the electrical charge of an electron with his Oil-Drop Experiment. (1)
The Oil-Drop Experiment consists of an oil droplet falling between two oppositely charged plates. Next, he determine the weight of the droplet by using the velocity of a sphere formula. Then, he increased the voltage of the plates to suspend the oil droplet in the air. Knowing the applied electric field, the mass of an oil drop, and the acceleration due to gravity, Millikan could find the charge of an electron was always a multiple of 1.602 × 10(E-19) coulombs. (2)
Millikan went on to establish the California Institute of Technology where he observed extraterrestrial radiation or cosmic rays. His research of the electron also proved Albert Einstein's Photoelectric Effect to be true. (3)
Millikan determined the electrical charge of an electron with his Oil-Drop Experiment. (1)
The Oil-Drop Experiment consists of an oil droplet falling between two oppositely charged plates. Next, he determine the weight of the droplet by using the velocity of a sphere formula. Then, he increased the voltage of the plates to suspend the oil droplet in the air. Knowing the applied electric field, the mass of an oil drop, and the acceleration due to gravity, Millikan could find the charge of an electron was always a multiple of 1.602 × 10(E-19) coulombs. (2)
Millikan went on to establish the California Institute of Technology where he observed extraterrestrial radiation or cosmic rays. His research of the electron also proved Albert Einstein's Photoelectric Effect to be true. (3)
Citations
1. Robert Andrews Millikan | biography - American physicist. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Andrews-Millikan
2. The Oil Drop Experiment. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/212_fall2003.web.dir/Ryan_McAllister/Slide3.htm
3. Molecular Expressions: Science, Optics and You - Timeline - Robert Andrews Millikan. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/millikan.html
1. Robert Andrews Millikan | biography - American physicist. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Andrews-Millikan
2. The Oil Drop Experiment. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/212_fall2003.web.dir/Ryan_McAllister/Slide3.htm
3. Molecular Expressions: Science, Optics and You - Timeline - Robert Andrews Millikan. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/millikan.html