Superfluids

ualondon Preliminary Inventory of the Fritz London Papers, 1922 - 1994 Processed by: Unprocessed; machine-readable finding aid created by: Jill Katte University ArchivesDuke University

Durham, N.C., U.S.A.

Aleph Number: 003425279

Machine-readable finding aid derived from automated markup system. Date of source: Processed by Unprocessed ; Finding Aid encoded by Jill Katte, University Archives, Duke University, March 2005 Description is in English. 05-01-2006 PUBLIC "-//University Archives//TEXT (US::NDD::::Fritz London Papers)//EN" "ualondon.xml converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02.xsl (sy2003-10-15).Also, the top level of the finding aid (above the dsc) was changed to conform to the NC EAD Best Practice Guidelines. Within the dsc, dates for series were normalized. 03-24-2010 Finding aid updated to include UA2010-0003 in March 2010 Preliminary Inventory of the Fritz London Papers, 1922-2008 (bulk 1926-1954) University Archives Duke University Durham, North Carolina 27708-0202 USA

Descriptive Summary Fritz London Papers, 1922-2008 (bulk 1926-1954) London, Fritz, 1900-1954. 7.6 Linear Feet, 3,500 Items University Archives, Duke University For current information on the location of these materials, please consult University Archives, Duke University. 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; selected publications and interview transcripts; and indexes to London's scientific correspondence. English and German. Administrative Information Access Restrictions

Patrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.

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.

Accession UA2010-0003 is included in this finding aid.

Encoded by Jill Katte, March 2005

Updated by Meghan Lyon, March 2010

This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.

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]

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.

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. Contents of 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.

1 Dec. 1926-1938 [15 folders] 2 1939-1954 and undated [10 folders] Translations of selected correspondence with Born, Casimir, and Von Laue 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.

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 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 7 Articles in German [6 folders] Galley proof of Superfluids 11 [A99-49, A2005-19] Articles, drafts, and notes Tr. R. v.1-2 Reprints of Published Articles, 1922-1953 [2 bound volumes] Writings by others 3 1943-1958 and undated 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 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.

4 [A97-101] 1935-1948 Electrodynamik 7 Note cards 8 Notebooks, Oct. 1927-July 1929 9 Notebooks, Oct. 1929-June 1933 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.

7 Slides of manuscript pages and technical drawings 8 Oversized drawings Electronic density of two hydrogen atoms with parallel spins Electronic density of two hydrogen atoms with antiparallel spin 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] Accession UA2010-0003, 1938-2008 (1 box)

This accession includes photocopies of correspondence between Laszlo Tisza and Fritz London, dating from 1938-1952, as well as interview transcripts of Tisza by Kostas Gavroglu (1987-1988), additional correspondence, and copies of selected publications. These materials were received from the MIT Institute Archives and Special Collections, which houses the originals in the Laszlo Tisza Papers (MC 676).

13Correspondence from Tisza to London, 1938-1952 Correspondence from London to Tisza, 1938-1952 Correspondence between Tisza and R.R. Davis of Physics Today, 1950-1951 Copies of articles from Nature, 1938, and The Electromagnetic Equations of the Supraconductor, by F. and H. London, from The Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, v. A149, 1935, p. 71-88 (from Supraconductivity, Selected Reprints, 1964) Physics Today, v. 11, n. 3, March 1958, p. 11-25 Cooperative Phenomena, symposium in honor of the 80th birthday of Professor Herbert Froehlich, 1986 Les Genies de la Science, Pour la Science, Edition Francaise de Scientific American, May-August 2004 Qui a decouvert la superfluidite? Sebastien Balibar, circa 2001 Correspondence, 1949-2001 (bulk 1949-1969) Correspondence, 1942-1991 (bulk 1942-1964) Correspondence between Tisza and Edith London, 1953-1974 Transcript of oral history interview with Tisza by Kostas Gavroglu, 1988 Transcripts of interviews with Tisza by Kostas Gavroglu, with edits, 1987-1988 Conference on the History of Thermodynamics (Facts, Trends, Debates), 23-28 July 1990, Veszprem, Hungary, Abstracts of the Conference The Atom and the Apple, Sebastien Balibar, 2008 (copy of the title page and table of contents only) Related Material The German and Jewish Intellectual Émigré Collection. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University at Albany, State University of New York. Bibliography Gavroglou, Kostas. Fritz London : a scientific biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.