Thomson, J. J., Sr

Name:
Thomson, J. J., Sr
Detailed information:
(1856–1940). A native of England, Thomson entered Cambridge University in 1876 and remained there permanently as a professor of physics, especially in the field of electrical phenomena. His observations and calculations of cathode ray experiments led to proof of the existence of the electron as the lightest particle of matter (1896). This proof was announced at the Royal Institution in the following year. This was the keystone of the theory of atomic structure and one of the most notable discoveries in the history of science.See Rutherford, Sir Ernest.