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Niels Bohr

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Niels Bohr, born in Copenhagen in 1885, was one of the fathers of modern atomic physics and the defining figure of an entire generation of physicists. In 1913 he put forward his famous atomic model: the electrons do not orbit the nucleus arbitrarily but only on certain fixed paths and when they jump from one path to another, they emit light in exactly defined portions. This model explained for the first time why atoms emit only very particular colours. In 1922 Bohr received the Nobel Prize for it. In Copenhagen he founded an institute that became the centre of quantum physics; almost all the great physicists of the age passed through it. With Albert Einstein he conducted years of friendly but profound debates about the strange nature of the quantum world: Einstein refused to believe that chance rules at the heart of matter. As a half-Jew, Bohr had to flee occupied Denmark in 1943; he escaped dramatically to Sweden and later worked on the American atomic bomb project, but warned early against a nuclear arms race. In his honour the chemical element 107 is named bohrium. He died in 1962: his institute and his ideas still shape physics today.

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Which country was Niels Bohr from?

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Denmark

He founded a famous institute in Copenhagen.

💡 Did you know? Niels Bohr was Danish: in Copenhagen his institute became a gathering place for the world's best physicists.

What is the Danish physicist best known for?

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Bohr model

Electrons on fixed orbits around the nucleus.

💡 Did you know? Bohr's atom model, with a nucleus and orbiting electrons, is still the image most people have of the atom.

How do electrons move in Bohr's model?

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fixed orbits

Jumping between them, they emit light in portions.

💡 Did you know? Bohr's idea of fixed electron orbits first explained why atoms emit only certain colours of light.

When did Bohr receive the Nobel Prize?

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1922

For his work on atomic structure.

💡 Did you know? Bohr won the physics Nobel in 1922: his son Aage also won one decades later.

With whom did Bohr debate about the quantum world?

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Albert Einstein

Einstein: God does not play dice.

💡 Did you know? Bohr and Einstein argued amicably for decades over the meaning of the quantum world: Einstein said: „God does not play dice.“

Which element 107 is named after the Danish physicist?

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bohrium

An artificially produced, heavy element.

💡 Did you know? The synthetic element bohrium (atomic number 107) is named after him.

Niels Bohr

Foto: The American Institute of Physics credits the photo [1] to AB Lagrelius & Westphal, which is the Swedish company used by the Nobel Foundation for most photos of its book series Les Prix Nobel. · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Which scientist is shown here?

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Niels Bohr

Niels Bohr was a Danish physicist whose atomic model and institute shaped quantum physics.

💡 Did you know? When the Nazis occupied Denmark, the chemist George de Hevesy dissolved two gold Nobel medals (those of Max von Laue and James Franck) in acid at Bohr’s institute to hide them; the gold was later recovered.

In which year was Niels Bohr born?

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1885

Born: 7 October 1885 in Copenhagen

In which year did Niels Bohr die?

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1962

Died: 18 November 1962 in Copenhagen, aged 77

How old was Niels Bohr at death?

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77

Died: 18 November 1962 in Copenhagen, aged 77

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