Research On The Early Rise Of The Physics Discipline In California Institute Of Technology(1920s-1930s)

From the overall backwardness in the early 20^th century,the physics discipline of California Institute of Technology has been regarded as the most prestigious physics discipline in the United States since 1930s,which realized a rapid rise.California Institute of Technology has developed into one of the world-renowned centers of physical research and activity from a local general technology college with only a few graduates could get bachelor's degrees each year.One of the most important factors contributing to such a brilliant miracle is that the California Institute of Technology employed many foremost scientists,such as Hale,a famous astrophysicist known as the father of solar astronomy,Millikan,a famous experimental physicist known as the founder of modern physics in the United States,and Noyes,a famous physical chemist known as the founder of the scientific tradition.At the same time,the United States had an urgent need for outstanding physical talents and high-precision scientific research achievements during the First World War,and insightful people from all walks of life strongly appealed for the revitalization of physics,which provided an important prerequisite for the smooth development of physics in the near future.In order to meet the urgent need for the development of physics in the United States,Millikan,Hale and Noyes gathered in Pasadena,Southern California,and opened the course of construction of the physics discipline of California Institute of Technology.On the one hand,they hold that they should closely focus on the needs of industrialization and urbanization in the United States,and work together to accomplish the mission of building first-class physics discipline and first-class university.On the other hand,they advocated the training of creative scientists and engineers to ensure the scale and quality of professional personnel to the U.S.petroleum,electronics and communications industries.In terms of the concept of running a school,they established a"small but refine"development model for the college in line with the needs of the industry;in terms of the teaching staff,they built a strong team of physics teachers by recruiting physics talents through multiple channels and creating a relaxed academic environment for high-level scholars;and in terms of the research platform,the advanced scientific research platform system represented by Norman Bridge Physics Laboratory was gradually established.On the cutting-edge achievements in scientific research,Millikan achieved the peak of his scientific career by virtue of the complete success of elementary charge and photoelectric effect experiments under the support of continuous scientific research funds;on the personnel training,the first six physicists were trained in1924,and a few years later,an outstanding doctoral graduate,Carl Anderson,won the Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering positron.These early achievements laid a solid foundation for the development of physics in California Institute of Technology over the next eighty years.The rapid rise of physics in California Institute of Technology in the 1920s and 1930s was attributed to the formation of unique school-running ideas and styles,the use of diversified measures to attract academic talents,the construction of major research platforms,the development of interdisciplinary research and personalized training mode for physics professionals.These experiences have great reference value for our universities to build world-class disciplines.