Herzberg, Gerhard

▪ 2000

      German-born Canadian physicist and molecular spectroscopist (b. Dec. 25, 1904, Hamburg, Ger.—d. March 3, 1999, Ottawa, Ont.), was awarded the 1971 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for having captured the elusive spectrograms, or “fingerprints” of electromagnetic frequency, of more than 30 free radicals (atoms with an unbonded electron). His experiments opened the way toward an understanding of electron shells, chemical bonding and other interactions, and the material makeup of outer space. At the age of 12, Herzberg and a friend built a homemade telescope, crafting even the lenses themselves. While a student at the Darmstadt (Ger.) Institute of Technology (1924–28), Herzberg published 12 papers on physics, and as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Göttingen, Ger., he worked under Max Born and James Franck. After fleeing Nazi Germany, Herzberg accepted an invitation from the University of Saskatchewan, where he remained until 1945. During this period he patterned the seminal Atomic Spectra and Atomic Structure (1937) and began working on his three-volume Molecular Spectra and Molecular Structure (1939–66). After a stint at the Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wis., he returned in 1948 to Canada as physics director of the National Research Council in Ottawa, which under his leadership reigned as one of the world's preeminent molecular spectroscopy labs. Herzberg and his associates traced the structure and geometry of electrons in diatomic molecules and free radicals, and they exposed the composition of comets and the presence of hydrogen in planetary atmospheres. As an octogenarian G.H., as he was affectionately known, discovered the spectrogram of triatomic hydrogen. He retired in 1995. Herzberg's Spectra of Diatomic Molecules (2nd ed., 1950) is another classic in the field.

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▪ Canadian physicist

born Dec. 25, 1904, Hamburg, Ger.

died March 3, 1999, Ottawa, Ont., Can.

      Canadian physicist and winner of the 1971 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his work in determining the electronic structure and geometry of molecules, especially free radicals (radical)—groups of atoms that contain odd numbers of electrons. His work provided the foundation for molecular spectroscopy (spectroscopy).

      Herzberg became Privatdozent (unsalaried lecturer) at the Darmstadt Institute of Technology in 1930 but fled Nazi Germany in 1935 and obtained a position with the University of Saskatchewan. From 1945 to 1948 he worked at the University of Chicago's Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, after which he returned to Canada, where he joined the National Research Council, Ottawa.

      Herzberg's spectroscopic studies not only provided experimental results of prime importance to physical chemistry (chemistry) and quantum mechanics but also helped stimulate a resurgence of investigations into the chemical reactions of gases. He devoted much of his research to diatomic molecules, in particular the most common ones—hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon monoxide. He discovered the spectra of certain free radicals (radical) that are intermediate stages in numerous chemical reactions, and he was the first to identify the spectra of certain radicals in interstellar gas. Herzberg also contributed much spectrographic information on the atmospheres of the outer planets and the stars. His most important works are Atomspektren und Atomstruktur (1936; Atomic Spectra and Atomic Structure) and a long-standing reference work, the four-volume Molecular Spectra and Molecular Structure (1939–79).

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