Maria Goeppert Mayer
University of Göttingen
Physics
1930
nuclear physics, quantum mechanics
Quantum Mechanics, Nuclear & Particle Physics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Goeppert_Mayer
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Scientist Biography
Biographical information
Maria Goeppert Mayer was a German-American physicist who developed the nuclear shell model, explaining the structure of atomic nuclei [2] [3]. She was the second female physicist to win the Nobel Prize in Physics. During the 1940s, she worked at Los Alamos on the Manhattan Project.
Relevant Concepts
Nuclear Shell ModelResearch Areas:
nuclear physics, quantum mechanicsRelevant Courses:
Quantum Mechanics, Nuclear & Particle PhysicsKey Contributions
Contributed to the development of the atomic bomb during World War II at Los Alamos, assisting in isotope separation and nuclear fission research.
Developed the nuclear shell model, a theoretical framework that describes how protons and neutrons arrange themselves in discrete energy levels within an atomic nucleus, similar to electron shells in atoms. She introduced the concept of 'magic numbers' (2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126), which correspond to especially stable configurations of nucleons [1].