Preliminary Inventory of the Fritz London Papers, 1922 - 1994
[top]Descriptive Summary
TitleFritz
London Papers,
1922 - 1994 (bulk 1926-1954)
Creator
London, Fritz,
1900-1954.
Extent
7.0 Linear Feet,
3,000 Items
Repository
3,000 Items
University Archives, Duke
University
Abstract
Fritz London, physicist and theoretical
chemist, formulated the London equations of
superconductivity with his brother, Heinz London. After
fleeing Nazi Germany in 1933, London held appointments at
Oxford and Paris, then at Duke University from 1939 to
1954. He specialized in low temperature physics and quantum
chemistry, and authored
Superfluids (1950)
and numerous articles. The Fritz London Papers include
correspondence, notes, manuscripts, reprints, and other
materials, with bulk dates 1926-1954. The more than 300
correspondents include Walter Heitler, F.A. Lindemann, Max
von Laue, Wolfgang Pauli, Michael Polyani, Erwin
Schrdinger, Enrico Fermi, Edward Teller, and other noted
scientists. Other materials include galleys and drafts of
Superfluids, lab
notebooks, course materials, notes, bound reprints.
Materials acquired after London's death include interviews
with Edith London; memorials; copies of correspondence held
in other repositories; and indexes to London's scientific
correspondence.
Language
English and German.
[top]
Administrative Information
Access RestrictionsPatrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Unprocessed materials are closed pending
processing.
Use Restrictions
Copyright for Official University records is
held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by
the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants,
as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Fritz London Papers,
University Archives, Duke University.
Provenance
The Fritz London Papers were received by the
University Archives as a gift in 1948-2005.
Processing Information
This collection is unprocessed: materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.
Encoded by Jill Katte, March 2005
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
[top]
Biographical Note
Fritz Wolfgang London was born in Breslau, Germany (Wrocjaw, Poland) in 1900, brother of Heinz London and son of a professor of mathematics in Bonn. He studied classics at the universities of Frankfurt and Munich and did research in philosophy leading to a doctorate at Bonn. Later he was attracted to theoretical physics and worked with Arnold Sommerfeld at Munich and Erwin Schrodinger at Zurich University in 1927, and published on the quantum theory of the chemical bond with Walter Heitler. In 1930 he calculated the non-polar component of forces between molecules, now called van der Waals or London forces. He and his brother fled from Germany in 1933 to Oxford where they joined Sir Francis Simon's group at the Clarendon Laboratory. Together they published major papers on conductivity giving the London equations (1935). Fritz moved to Duke University in the USA (1939-54) and continued to work on superconductivity and superfluidity.
[Biography from Chambers Biographical Dictionary, 1997]
[top]Collection Overview
The Fritz London Papers include correspondence,
notes, manuscripts, reprints, and other materials, with
bulk dates 1926-1954. The more than 300 correspondents
include Walter Heitler, F.A. Lindemann, Max von Laue,
Wolfgang Pauli, Michael Polyani, Erwin Schrdinger, Enrico
Fermi, Edward Teller, and other noted scientists. Major
subjects include chemistry and theoretical physics, the
Nazi regime and its effects on German scientists and
academics, and London's emigration from Germany. Other
materials include galleys and drafts of
Superfluids, 30 lab
notebooks, course materials, notes, bound reprints, and a
manuscript on the significance of quantum theory for
chemistry. Materials acquired after London's death include
interviews with Mrs. London; memorials; copies of
correspondence held in other repositories; indexes to
London's scientific correspondence prepared by Kostas
Gavroglou; a bound volume of notes written out by London
from lectures given by Prof. Arnold Sommerfeld (1868-1951)
at the University of Munich.
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Subject Headings
These and related materials may be accessed under
the following subject headings in the Duke University
Libraries online catalog.
- London, Fritz, 1900-1954.
- Duke University. Dept. of Physics.
- Duke University--Faculty.
- Electric conductivity.
- Fluids.
- Helium.
Related Material
The German and Jewish Intellectual
migr Collection.
M.E. Grenander Department of Special
Collections and Archives, University at Albany, State
University of New York.
Preliminary Description of the Collection
Correspondence, 1926-1954 and undated
Includes professional letters and
correspondence, with a significant portion in German.
Earlier accessions of correspondence (Boxes 1-2) are
organized chronologically, while later accessions of
correspondence are organized alphabetically by
correspondent. There is significant overlap between the two
arrangement types, and both should be consulted. An index
to the correspondence is available; please contact
University Archives for more information. The more than 300
correspondents include Walter Heitler, F.A. Lindemann, Max
von Laue, Wolfgang Pauli, Michael Polyani, Erwin
Schrdinger, Enrico Fermi, Edward Teller, and other noted
scientists.
Box 1
Dec.
1926-1938
[15
folders]
Box 2
1939-1954 and
undated
[10
folders]
Translations of selected
correspondence with Born, Casimir, and Von Laue
Box 5-6, 11
[A96-76, A99-25, A99-49]:
Correspondence arranged by
correspondent
Additional materials written by named
correspondents also appear in Box 1 and 2.
Manuscripts and writings, 1922-1958, 1988-1994
Includes articles, lectures, reprints, and
manuscript drafts written, and sometimes annotated, by
London. Also included are writings of London's colleagues,
as well as articles and interview about London's life and
work, written after his death in 1954.
Box 3
Superfluids,
Vols. 1-2, circa
1950-1953
[7
folders]
Untitled: Quantum theory and
chemical bonds, circa
1930-1931
[2
folders]
Lectures
"The Structure of the
Atom in Chemical Bonding,"
1930
"Theory of
Relativity,"
circa
1931
Box 6
[A99-25]:
"Theory of
Metals,"
1935
"On
Supraconductivity,"
1935
"Theory of
Reduction,"
1936
"Theory of Molecular
Forces,"
1936
Lecture in Whitehead's Seminar,
1936
1937 (in
French)
1938
Math-Chem Seminar,
1940
Undated
Drafts
Box 7
Articles in German
[6
folders]
Galley proof of
Superfluids
Box 11
[A99-49, A2005-19]:
Articles, drafts, and notes
Volume
Tr. R.
v.1-2
Reprints of Published
Articles,
1922-1953
[2 bound
volumes]
Writings by others
1943-1958 and
undated
Box 4
[A97-101]:
Transcript of Edith London
interview conducted by Steven Heims,
1988
"From Philosophy to
Physics: The Work of Fritz London,"
lecture by
Kostos Gavroglu,
1991
Memoir of Fritz London by Edith
London,
1994
Course materials, 1928-1952 and undated
Includes lecture notes and formulas for
courses taught by London. Some overlap may exist with the
Writings and manuscripts series and the Notes series.
Chemical physics, 1940s and
undated
Electrodynamics,
1946-1947
Thermodynamics,
1944-1945
Mechanics,
1930-1931
Quantum mechanics,
1928-1929
Box 11
[A2005-19]:
Superfluids,
1952
Notes, 1927-1948 and undated
Includes lab notebooks, note cards, and other
notes relating to London's research, writing, and
teaching.
Box 4
[A97-101]:
1935-1948
Electrodynamik
Box 7
Note cards
Box 8
Notebooks,
Oct. 1927-July
1929
Box 9
Notebooks,
Oct. 1929-June
1933
Box 10
Notebooks,
Jan. 1934-Dec.
1942
Audio and visual materials, 1987 and undated
Includes slides of manuscript pages and
technical drawings, oversized drawings, and two sound
recordings of oral history interviews related to London's
life and work.
Oral history interviews require the creation
of listening copies before use. Please contact Archives
staff prior to visiting the Duke University Archives to
access these materials.
Box 7
Slides of manuscript pages and
technical drawings
MC
8
Oversized drawings
Electronic density of two hydrogen atoms with parallel spins
Electronic density of two hydrogen atoms with antiparallel spin
Box 12
[A90-10]:
Oral history interviews with Edith
London,
Feb. 1987-June
1987
[10 cassette
tapes]
Interview with Marcus Hobbs,
June 12,
1987
[1 cassette
tape]
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Bibliography
Gavroglou, Kostas.
Fritz London : a
scientific biography.
Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press,
1995.
