was a Japanese

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...

, known for his explanation of the Kikuchi lines that show up in

diffraction Diffraction is defined as the interference or bending of waves around the corners of an obstacle or through an aperture into the region of geometrical shadow of the obstacle/aperture. The diffracting object or aperture effectively becomes a s ...

patterns of diffusely scattered electrons.

Biography

Seishi Kikuchi was born and grew up in Tokyo. He graduated in 1926 from Tokyo Imperial University. In 1928, Kikuchi and Shoji Nishikawa observed and gave a theoretical explanation of the

electron backscatter diffraction Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) is a scanning electron microscope–based microstructural- crystallographic characterization technique commonly used in the study of crystalline or polycrystalline materials. The technique can provide inf ...

pattern from a

calcite Calcite is a carbonate mineral and the most stable polymorph of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). It is a very common mineral, particularly as a component of limestone. Calcite defines hardness 3 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, based on scratc ...

cleavage face.T. Maitland and S. Sitzman, “Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) Technique and Materials Characterization Examples,” in W. Zhou and Z.L. Wang, eds., ''Scanning Microscopy for Nanotechnology: Techniques and Applications, 2007 Edition'', Springer (2007), , p 41-75. In 1929, he went to Germany as a student. In 1934, he was appointed as professor at Osaka Imperial University and directed the construction of Japan's first DC high voltage Cockcroft-Walton accelerator. In 1955, he was appointed as the first director of the Institute of Nuclear Research at the

University of Tokyo , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

, and successfully presided over the completion of the variable energy

cyclotron A cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator invented by Ernest O. Lawrence in 1929–1930 at the University of California, Berkeley, and patented in 1932. Lawrence, Ernest O. ''Method and apparatus for the acceleration of ions'', filed: Jan ...

. Between 1959 and 1964, he was chairman of the

Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute ( ja, 日本原子力研究所) (JAERI) is a former semi-governmental organization that existed for the purpose of further nuclear power in Japan. It was created in June 1956 by the Atomic Energy Basic Law ...

References

Japanese nuclear physicists Japanese physicists 1902 births 1974 deaths People from Tokyo University of Tokyo alumni University of Tokyo faculty Osaka University faculty Recipients of the Order of Culture Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1st class Riken personnel {{physicist-stub