Antonius van den Broek | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 4 May 1870 |
| Died | 26 October 1926 (aged 56) |
| Alma mater | Leiden University Sorbonne University |
| Known for | Identifying the atomic number of a chemical element with the charge of the nucleus |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mathematical economics Atomic physics |
Antonius Johannes van den Broek (4 May 1870 – 25 October 1926) was a Dutch mathematical economist and amateur physicist, notable for being the first who realized that the position of an element in the periodic table (now called atomic number) corresponds to the charge of its atomic nucleus. This hypothesis was published in 1911 and inspired the experimental work of Henry Moseley, who found good experimental evidence for it by 1913.