The quantum theory of radiation. In Philosophical Magazine 47. First edition in English

Bohr, Niels; H. A. Kramers; John C. Slater

Publication Date: 1924

About this Item

Bohr, Niels (1885-1962); H. A. Kramers (1894-1954); and John C. Slater (1900-1976). The quantum theory of radiation. In The London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine, 6th series, 47 (1924): 785-802. Whole number. 785-1056pp. 2 plates. 223 x 146 mm. Original printed wrappers, spine a bit chipped. Very good. First Edition in English, journal issue of the famous Bohr-Kramers-Slater (BKS) paper, in which Bohr and his co-authors attempted to do away with Einstein s light quanta by proposing a new quantum theory of radiation. The existence of light quanta had been proved experimentally by Arthur H. Compton s discovery of the Compton effect, the change in wavelength of x-rays scattered from a target at various angles. "Compton recognized that the shift in the wavelength of x-rays, if scattered by atoms, could be derived only by assuming the existence of radiation in the form of light-quanta, which collide with the electrons in atoms in elementary processes" (Mehra & Rechenberg, The Historical Development of Quantum Theory, 1, p. 554). However, Bohr disputed Compton s interpretation, and in 1924 published his paper with Kramers and Slater arguing that Compton s observations could be explained by assuming that in interactions between atoms and radiation, energy is only statistically conserved. "The most striking feature of this remarkable paper . . . was the renunciation of the classical form of causality in favor of a purely statistical description. Even the distribution of energy and momentum between the radiation field and the virtual oscillators constituting the atomic systems was assumed to be statistical, the conservation laws being fulfilled only on the average" (Dictionary of Scientific Biography). The Bohr-Kramers-Slater radiation theory was disproved shortly after its publication by the experiments of Bothe and Geiger and of Compton and Simon, which established that the principles of energy conservation and of causality held true even at the most elementary level. "Nevertheless, this short-lived attempt exerted a profound influence on the course of events; what remained after its failure was the conviction that the classical mode of description of the atomic processes had to be entirely relinquished" (Dictionary of Scientific Biography). The BKS paper was first published in German in the Zeitschrift für Physik 24 (1924). .

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: The quantum theory of radiation. In Philosophical Magazine 47. First edition in English
• Publication Date: 1924
• Binding: Soft cover
• Edition: 1st Edition