LANGMUIR
Patent No. 1,180,159 Incandescent Electric Lamp
American inventor Irving Langmuir was born on January 31, 1881 in Brooklyn, New York. His early education was divided between the public schools in New York and those in Paris, France. He later earned a B.S. degree from the Columbia University School of Mines and a Ph.D. in chemistry in Germany at the University of Gottingen.
Intending to take a summer job, he landed at the General Electric Research Laboratory in Schenectady, New York. But that job blossomed into a career with the company that lasted the rest of his life. His initial GE research involved low-pressure chemical reactions and the study of emission of electrons by hot filaments in a vacuum. Two major inventions emerged from this work: The high-vacuum electron tube in 1912 and the gas-filled incandescent lamp in 1913.
Langmuir was also played a fundamental role in the development of commercial electrical products, as well as those in military and scientific areas. His contributions to atomic theory and the understanding of atomic structure threw light upon the meaning of isotopes. During World War II, he was one of the key advisors in the national defense and wartime scientific research programs, contributing to the development of radar for use by the British and United States armed forces.
During his career, Langmuir also made important contributions to many other fields, including electronics, plasma physics, atomic and molecular structure. He published more than 200 scientific works, received 63 patents and was awarded the 1932 Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
Irving Langmuir died in Falmouth, Massachusetts on August 16, 1957.
The above information was supplied by the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc., Room 1D01-Crystal Plaza 3, 2021 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202. Videotapes and printed materials are currently available, including the National Inventors Hall of Fame Book of Inventor Profiles ($3.00).
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