The Cavendish Professorship is one of the senior faculty positions in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. It was founded on 9 February 1871 alongside the famous

Cavendish Laboratory The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...

, which was completed three years later.

William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire, (27 April 1808 – 21 December 1891), styled as Lord Cavendish of Keighley between 1831 and 1834 and known as Earl of Burlington between 1834 and 1858, was a British landowner, benefactor, nobleman, ...

endowed both the professorship and laboratory in honor of his relative, chemist and physicist

Henry Cavendish Henry Cavendish ( ; 10 October 1731 – 24 February 1810) was an English natural philosopher and scientist who was an important experimental and theoretical chemist and physicist. He is noted for his discovery of hydrogen, which he termed "infl ...

History

Creation of the Cavendish Laboratory

Before the middle of the nineteenth century, science was largely pursued by individuals, either wealthy amateurs or academics working in their college accommodation. In 1869, a committee formed by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

reported that creating a dedicated Laboratory and Professorship would cost £6,300. The then chancellor of the university, William Cavendish met that cost privately 18 months later, and named the department in honor of his relative, the 18th century natural philosopher

James Clerk Maxwell

The first Cavendish Professor was the then relatively obscure

James Clerk Maxwell James Clerk Maxwell (13 June 1831 – 5 November 1879) was a Scottish mathematician and scientist responsible for the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, which was the first theory to describe electricity, magnetism and ligh ...

, who had yet to complete the work that would make him the most renowned physicist of the nineteenth century. His appointment was announced on 8 March 1871, and despite initial disappointment at his being offered the place, his inaugural lecture was looked forward to by his likely students as well as his future colleagues. However, it was poorly advertised, so it was only to his students that he laid out his plans for physics at Cambridge. When Maxwell began the actual course a few days later with a lecture on heat, it was attended by academics in formal dress, in the belief that it was the first lecture. Maxwell spent the next three years supervising the construction of the dedicated Cavendish Laboratory, and published in 1873

A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism ''A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism'' is a two-volume treatise on electromagnetism written by James Clerk Maxwell in 1873. Maxwell was revising the ''Treatise'' for a second edition when he died in 1879. The revision was completed by Wil ...

. Maxwell's health deteriorated a short time into his tenure, and he died in 1879, aged 48.

Lord Rayleigh

Lord Rayleigh John William Strutt, 3rd Baron Rayleigh, (; 12 November 1842 – 30 June 1919) was an English mathematician and physicist who made extensive contributions to science. He spent all of his academic career at the University of Cambridge. Amo ...

replaced Maxwell immediately upon his death, being universally agreed upon as the only successor. Raleigh spent £1500 updating the laboratory, and created a new practical course, revolutionising practical instruction, and in 1882 he allowed women to take the course as well. In his five years as Cavendish Professor, he published 50 papers and expanded the number of students to 48.

J. J. Thomson

J. J. Thomson Sir Joseph John Thomson (18 December 1856 – 30 August 1940) was a British physicist and Nobel Laureate in Physics, credited with the discovery of the electron, the first subatomic particle to be discovered. In 1897, Thomson showed that c ...

was made Cavendish Professor in 1884 at the age of 28, leading one senior member of the University to comment that "Matters have come to a pretty pass when they elect mere boys Professors." In 1895, a change was made to the university regulations which allowed students who had not studied at Cambridge to receive a B.A. by submitting a thesis which was judged "of distinction as a record of original research." Among the students attracted by this change was future Cavendish Professor

Ernest Rutherford Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937) was a New Zealand physicist who came to be known as the father of nuclear physics. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' considers him to be the greatest ...

. Whilst Thomson was Cavendish Professor, he discovered the

electron The electron ( or ) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary electric charge. Electrons belong to the first generation of the lepton particle family, and are generally thought to be elementary particles because they have no kn ...

and the existence of

isotopes Isotopes are two or more types of atoms that have the same atomic number (number of protons in their nuclei) and position in the periodic table (and hence belong to the same chemical element), and that differ in nucleon numbers (mass numbers) ...

, and also fostered an atmosphere of friendliness and mutual helpfulness.

Ernest Rutherford

Rutherford returned to Cambridge in 1918, and spent the last 19 years of his life there. This was around the time of the change from classical to modern physics, and Rutherford was something of a contradiction, dressing as a Victorian gentleman but working on the cutting edge of physics. Rutherford died suddenly in 1937, marking the end of an era for the Cavendish.

William Lawrence Bragg

Sir Lawrence Bragg became Cavendish Professor just before the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, which resulted in many staff joining various defence research establishments, notably to develop radar. Work on

neutron The neutron is a subatomic particle, symbol or , which has a neutral (not positive or negative) charge, and a mass slightly greater than that of a proton. Protons and neutrons constitute the nuclei of atoms. Since protons and neutrons beh ...

physics performed at this time was translated into the

Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...

to build an atom bomb.

Nevill Francis Mott

In 1971 it was renamed from the "Cavendish Professorship of Experimental Physics" to the "Cavendish Professorship of Physics". Until

Brian Pippard Sir Alfred Brian Pippard, FRS (7 September 1920 – 21 September 2008), was a British physicist. He was Cavendish Professor of Physics from 1971 until 1982 and an Honorary Fellow of Clare Hall, Cambridge, of which he was the first President. ...

became the Cavendish Professor in 1971, the holder was also the head of the Physics Department.

List of Cavendish Professors

There have been nine Cavendish Professors since its inception: *

(1871–1879) *

(1879–1884) *

(1884–1919) *

(1919–1937) *

William Lawrence Bragg Sir William Lawrence Bragg, (31 March 1890 – 1 July 1971) was an Australian-born British physicist and X-ray crystallographer, discoverer (1912) of Bragg's law of X-ray diffraction, which is basic for the determination of crystal structu ...

(1938–1953) *

Nevill Francis Mott Sir Nevill Francis Mott (30 September 1905 – 8 August 1996) was a British physicist who won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1977 for his work on the electronic structure of magnetic and disordered systems, especially amorphous semiconductors. ...

(1954–1971) *

(1971–1984) *

Sam Edwards Sam George Edwards (May 26, 1915 – July 28, 2004) was an American actor. His most famous role on television was as banker Bill Anderson on ''Little House on the Prairie''.D.S.S. Form 1 Military Draft Registration Card completed on October 16, ...

(1984–1995) *

Richard Friend Sir Richard Henry Friend (born 18 January 1953) is a British physicist who was the Cavendish Professor of Physics at the University of Cambridge from 1995 until 2020 and is Tan Chin Tuan Centennial Professor at the National University of Singap ...

(1995–2020) * Vacant (2020–present)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Professor of Physics, Cavendish Physics, Cavendish Cavendish Laboratory 1871 establishments in England Physics, Cavendish