Pierre Weiss

Pierre Weiss
Born(1865-03-25)25 March 1865
Died24 October 1940(1940-10-24) (aged 75)
NationalityFrench
Known forCurie–Weiss law
Mean field theory
Magnetic domain
Weiss magneton
Magnetocaloric effect
Cotton-Weiss method
AwardsCommandeur of the Legion of Honor (1935)[1]
Scientific career
FieldsPhysics, magnetism
InstitutionsUniversity of Rennes, University of Lyon, ETH Zurich, University of Strasbourg,
Thesis Recherches sur l'aimantation de la magnétite cristallisée et de quelques alliages de fer et d’antimoine  (1896)
Doctoral advisorJules Violle
Marcel Brillouin
Doctoral studentsLouis Néel
Charles Sadron

Pierre-Ernest Weiss (25 March 1865, Mulhouse – 24 October 1940, Lyon) was a French physicist who specialized in magnetism. He developed the domain theory of ferromagnetism in 1907.[2] Weiss domains and the Weiss magneton are named after him. Weiss also developed the molecular or mean field theory, which is often called Weiss-mean-field theory, that led to the discovery of the Curie–Weiss law. Alongside Auguste Piccard, Pierre Weiss is considered one of the first discoverers of the magnetocaloric effect in 1917.[3]

Pierre Weiss made several experimental discoveries that led to the development of the strongest electromagnets of the beginning of the 20th century. He worked at the universities of Rennes, Lyon, ETH Zurich where he was raised, and finally at Strasbourg. In these academic institutions he founded several renown laboratories.

During his lifetime, Weiss was nominated 23 times to the Nobel Prize in Physics.[4]

  1. ^ "Base Eléonore. Fiche signalétique de la Légion d'Honneur de Pierre Ernest Weiss". culture.gouv.fr (in French). 22 May 1935. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  2. ^ Hellemans, Alexander; Bunch, Bryan (1988). The Timetables of Science. Simon & Schuster. p. 411. ISBN 0671621300.
  3. ^ Weiss, Pierre; Piccard, Auguste (1917). "Le phénomène magnétocalorique" (PDF). J. Phys. (Paris). 5th Ser. (7): 103–109.
    Smith, Anders (2013). "Who discovered the magnetocaloric effect?". The European Physical Journal H. 38 (4): 507–517. Bibcode:2013EPJH...38..507S. doi:10.1140/epjh/e2013-40001-9. S2CID 18956148.
  4. ^ "Nomination Archive - Pierre Weiss". NobelPrize.org. April 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.