Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein

Theoretical Physicist

Theoretical physicist who developed the general theory of relativity.

Personal Details
Born	14 March 1879 Ulm, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire
Died	18 April 1955 Princeton, New Jersey, United States
Nationality	German / Swiss / American
Spouse	Mileva Marić (m. 1903; div. 1919) Elsa Löwenthal (m. 1919; d. 1936)
Children	Lieserl, Hans Albert, Eduard
Career & Education
Occupation	Theoretical Physicist
Education	Federal Polytechnic School, Zurich (PhD, University of Zurich)
Alma Mater	Federal Polytechnic School, Zurich
Known For	General relativity, Special relativity, Photoelectric effect, E=mc²
Years Active	1901–1955
Recognition & Links
Awards	Nobel Prize in Physics (1921), Copley Medal (1925), Max Planck Medal (1929)
Website	Official Website

Albert Einstein (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is widely held to be one of the greatest and most influential scientists of all time. Best known for developing the theory of relativity, Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics, and was thus a central figure in the revolutionary reshaping of the scientific understanding of nature that Einstein accomplished during the first decades of the twentieth century.

His mass–energy equivalence formula $E = mc^2$, which arises from relativity theory, has been called "the world's most famous equation". He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect", a pivotal step in the development of quantum theory.

Overview

Einstein published more than 300 scientific papers and more than 150 non-scientific works. His intellectual achievements and originality have made the word "Einstein" synonymous with "genius".

Early life

Albert Einstein was born in Ulm, in the Kingdom of Württemberg in the German Empire, on 14 March 1879. His family moved to Munich in 1880, where his father Hermann Einstein and his uncle Jakob founded Elektrotechnische Fabrik J. Einstein & Cie, a company that manufactured electrical equipment based on direct current.

Education

Einstein excelled at math and physics from a young age, reaching a mathematical level years ahead of his peers. At age 17, he enrolled in the four-year mathematics and physics teaching diploma program at the Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich, graduating in 1900. He later earned his PhD from the University of Zurich in 1905 with his thesis *A New Determination of Molecular Dimensions*.

Career

In 1905, often referred to as his *annus mirabilis* (miracle year), Einstein published four groundbreaking papers in the *Annalen der Physik* journal, introducing special relativity, Brownian motion, the photoelectric effect, and mass-energy equivalence. He served as professor of theoretical physics at Zurich, Prague, ETH Zurich, and the University of Berlin, before joining the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1933.

Major works

• Special Relativity (1905): Proposed that physical laws are identical for all observers in uniform motion relative to one another.
• Photoelectric Effect (1905): Demonstrated that light consists of discrete quanta (photons).
• General Relativity (1915): Formulated gravity as the curvature of spacetime.
• Bose–Einstein Statistics (1924–1925): Predicted the existence of Bose–Einstein condensates.

Awards and recognition

• Nobel Prize in Physics (1921)
• Matteucci Medal (1921)
• Copley Medal of the Royal Society (1925)
• Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (1926)
• Max Planck Medal (1929)

Legacy

Einstein's theories laid the groundwork for modern atomic energy, quantum optics, cosmology, satellite navigation (GPS), and semiconductor physics. His archival collection at Hebrew University of Jerusalem remains an invaluable resource for researchers worldwide.

External links

• Official Nobel Prize Biography
• The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein at Princeton University Press