Albert A. Michelson

Albert A. Michelson
Michelson in 1907 (photograph of Nobel laureate)
Born	(1852-12-19)December 19, 1852 Strelno, Kingdom of Prussia, German Confederation
Died	May 9, 1931(1931-05-09) (aged 78) Pasadena, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Alma mater	United States Naval Academy University of Berlin
Known for	Speed of light Hyperfine structure Fine structure Michelson–Morley experiment Michelson–Gale–Pearson experiment Michelson interferometer Michelson stellar interferometer
Spouses	Margaret Hemingway ​ ​ (m. 1877; div. 1898)​ ; 3 children Edna Stanton ​ (m. 1899)​ ; 3 children
Military career
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Navy United States Navy Reserve [2]
Service years	1873–1881; 1918–1921[2]
Rank	Commander
Unit	United States Naval Academy
Awards	Matteucci Medal (1903) Nobel Prize in Physics (1907) Copley Medal (1907) Elliott Cresson Medal (1912) Henry Draper Medal (1916) Albert Medal (1920) Franklin Medal (1923) Duddell Medal and Prize (1929)
Scientific career
Fields	Physics
Institutions	Case Western Reserve University Clark University University of Chicago
Doctoral advisor	Hermann von Helmholtz
Other academic advisors	Georg Hermann Quincke[1] Alfred Cornu[1]
Doctoral students	Robert Millikan William Smythe
Signature

Albert Abraham Michelson FFRS FRSE (surname pronunciation anglicized as "Michael-son", December 19, 1852 – May 9, 1931) was a Prussian-born American physicist of Jewish descent, known for his work on measuring the speed of light and especially for the Michelson–Morley experiment. In 1907 he received the Nobel Prize in Physics, becoming the first American to win the Nobel Prize in a science. He was the founder and the first head of the physics departments of Case School of Applied Science (now Case Western Reserve University) and the University of Chicago.^[3][4][5]