Brownian motion discovery

It is somewhat surprising that despite all of his contributions to science and engineering, including his work on Brownian motion and the theory of relativity, Albert Einstein (1879-1955) won his only Nobel Prize in 1921 for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect. ... 

The close interaction of colloid and surface science with molecular physics and a number of theoretical disciplines has determined its role in the development of natural sciences as a whole. The discovery of the nature of, and the further investigation of Brownian motion, the development of direct... 

Albert Einstein (1879-1955). .. was a German-bom theoretical physicist who is mainly renowned for his special theory of relativity and its extension to the general theory of relativity. In addition to this, he worked on statistical mechanics and quantum theory and investigated the thermal properties of light. At the beginning of his scientific career he also set important landmarks for colloid science. This applies particularly to his explanation of Brownian motion, but is also valid for the calculation of suspension viscosity as well as his theory of critical opalescence. In 1921, he was given the Nobel Prize in Physics Tor his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect . 

Jean-Baptiste Perrin (1870-1942). .. was a French physicist who worked on various subjects, for instance, on cathode rays, fluorescence, sound propagation, and the decay of radium. A major part of his scientiflc life was dedicated to colloids. His investigations on the Brownian motion of colloids by means of the previously developed ultramicroscope verified Einstein s statistic explanation of this phenomenon and thereby confirmed the atomic nature of matter. Moreover, Perrin was able to closely limit the possible range of Avogadro s number and he discovered the sedimentation-diffusion equilibrium. For his work on the discontinuous structure of matter and especially for his discovery of sedimentation equilibrium he received 1926 the Nobel Prize in Physics. 

Marian von Smoluchowski (1872-1917). .. was a Polish physicist whose research on discrete state matter is still highly valued in modem science. He is particularly acknowledged for his theory on Brownian motion, which he developed independently of Einstein and which laid the foundation for the theory of stochastic processes. A similar rank is deserved by his discovery of density fluctuations in liquids and gases and their relevance for macroscopic scattering— most prominently explained by the phenomenon of critical opalescence. Both works proved veiy influential for the understanding of colloidal suspensions. Furthermore, he did pioneering work on the quantification of particle aggregation as well as in the field of electrokinetic phenomena. 

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