 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2013) |
Robert B. Leighton | |
|---|---|
 Leighton in the Caltech Synchrotron Building, working on the first of the 10.4 meter radio telescope dishes in 1974 | |
| Born | September 10, 1919 |
| Died | March 9, 1997 (aged 77) |
| Alma mater | California Institute of Technology (BS) |
| Known for | Leighton solar dynamo model Leighton Radio Telescopes Two-Micron Sky Survey The Feynman Lectures on Physics |
| Children | Ralph Leighton |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Experimental physics |
| Institutions | California Institute of Technology |
| Thesis | The vibrational spectrum of a mon-atomic face-centered cubic crystal lattice (1947) |
| Doctoral advisor | William V. Houston Paul Sophus Epstein |
Robert Benjamin Leighton (/ˈleɪtən/; September 10, 1919 – March 9, 1997) was a prominent American experimental physicist who spent his professional career at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).[1] His work over the years spanned solid state physics, cosmic ray physics, the beginnings of modern particle physics, solar physics, the planets, infrared astronomy, and millimeter- and submillimeter-wave astronomy. In the latter four fields, his pioneering work opened up entirely new areas of research that subsequently developed into vigorous scientific communities.
- ^ Peck, Charles; Neugebauer, Gerry; Vogt, Rochus (September 1997). "Obituary: Robert Benjamin Leighton". Physics Today. 50 (9): 96. Bibcode:1997PhT....50i..96P. doi:10.1063/1.881893. Archived from the original on 2013-10-12.