Peter Berners Fellgett FRS, FIEE (11 April 1922 – 15 November 2008) was a British physicist. He was the professor of Cybernetics at the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

Fellgett's advantage

He is best known for

Fellgett's advantage Fellgett's advantage or the multiplex advantage is an improvement in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that is gained when taking multiplexed measurements rather than direct measurements. The name is derived from P. B. Fellgett, who first made the observ ...

: the improvement of the

signal-to-noise ratio Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR or S/N) is a measure used in science and engineering that compares the level of a desired signal to the level of background noise. SNR is defined as the ratio of signal power to the noise power, often expressed in deci ...

by using multiplex measurements, i.e. simultaneous measurement at different wavelengths, such as

Fourier transform spectroscopy Fourier-transform spectroscopy is a measurement technique whereby spectra are collected based on measurements of the coherence of a radiative source, using time-domain or space-domain measurements of the radiation, electromagnetic or not. It ca ...

. This work emerged from his 1949 dissertation (''Theory of Infra-Red Sensitivities and Its Application to Investigations of Stellar Radiation in the Near Infra-Red'') while at the University of Cambridge.

Royal Observatory Edinburgh

From Cambridge he moved to the

Royal Observatory Edinburgh The Royal Observatory, Edinburgh (ROE) is an astronomical institution located on Blackford Hill in Edinburgh. The site is owned by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). The ROE comprises the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK&nbs ...

where he continued his interests in instrument science.

University of Reading

In 1964, he moved to the University of Reading where he became professor of Cybernetics and Instrument Physics. While at Reading he was involved on research in

Ambisonics Ambisonics is a ''full-sphere'' surround sound format: in addition to the horizontal plane, it covers sound sources above and below the listener. Unlike some other multichannel surround formats, its transmission channels do not carry speaker si ...

(with

Michael Gerzon Michael Anthony Gerzon (4 December 1945 – 6 May 1996) is probably best known for his work on Ambisonics and for his work on digital audio. He also made a large number of recordings, many in the field of free improvisation in which he had a par ...

), as well as continuing his interest in instrumentation. He retired in 1987. His Professorship (in Cybernetics) was taken over by

Kevin Warwick Kevin Warwick (born 9 February 1954) is an English engineer and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) at Coventry University. He is known for his studies on direct interfaces between computer systems and the human nervous system, and has also done ...

Awards

He received the

R. W. Wood Prize The R. W. Wood Prize is an award endowed by Xerox and given by The Optical Society to an individual that makes an outstanding technical contribution or an invention in the field of optics. The award was established in 1975 in commemoration of Robert ...

in 1977, became a fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

in 1961 and a fellow of

the Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 1986. He was an Honorary Fellow of the

Cybernetics Society The Cybernetics Society is a UK-based learned society that exists to promote the understanding of Cybernetics. The core activity of the Cybernetics Society is the organization and facilitation of scientific meetings, conferences, and social events. ...

.http://www.cybsoc.org Professor Peter Felgett FRS HonFCybS Obituary

References

External links

Obituary by Richard Mitchell

Obituary by the Royal Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fellgett, Peter 1922 births 2008 deaths British physicists Fellows of the Royal Society Alumni of the University of Cambridge Academics of the University of Reading