Histories of the Electron: The Birth of Microphysics (Dibner Institute Studies in the History of Science and Technology)

Acknowledgements......Page 8
Contributors......Page 10
Introduction......Page 16
1 J. J. Thomson and the Electron, 1897-1899......Page 36
2 Corpuscles to Electrons......Page 92
3 The Questionable Matter of Electricity: The Reception of J.J. Thomson's "Corpuscle" Among Electrical Theorists and Technologists......Page 116
4 Paul Villard, J.J. Thomson, and the Composition of Cathode Rays......Page 150
5 The Zeeman Effect and the Discovery of the Electron......Page 186
6 The Electron, the Protyle, and the Unity of Matter......Page 210
7 O.W. Richardson and the Electron Theory of Matter, 1901-1916......Page 242
8 Electron Gas Theory of Metals: Free Electrons in Bulk Matter......Page 270
9 The Electron and the Nucleus......Page 322
10 The Electron, the Hole, and the Transistor......Page 342
11 Remodeling a Classic: The Electron in Organic Chemistry, 1900-1940......Page 354
12 The Physicists' Electron and Its Appropriation by the Chemists......Page 378
13 Who Really Discovered the Electron?......Page 418
14 History and Metaphysics: On the Reality of Spin......Page 440
15 What Should Philosophers of Science Learn from the History of the Electron?......Page 466
16 The Role of Theory in the Use of Instruments: or, How Much Do We Need to Know about Electrons to Do Science with an Electron Microscope?......Page 482
Index......Page 518