Ettore Majorana
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Springer Biographies Ettore Majorana Unveiled Genius and Endless Mysteries SALVATORE ESPOSITO Springer Biographies More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/13617 Salvatore Esposito Ettore Majorana Unveiled Genius and Endless Mysteries Translated by Laura Gentile de Fraia 123 Salvatore Esposito I.N.F.N. Naples’ Unit Naples Italy Any document or picture reproduced here (with permission) and published originally in (Recami 1987) cannot be further reproduced without the written consent of the rights holders. ISSN 2365-0613 ISSN 2365-0621 (electronic) Springer Biographies ISBN 978-3-319-54318-5 ISBN 978-3-319-54319-2 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-54319-2 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017933444 Translation from the Italian language edition: La cattedra vacante © Liguori Editore 2009. All Rights Reserved. © Springer International Publishing AG 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Acknowledgements My interest in the scientific work of the protagonist of this book, Ettore Majorana, was first excited by Erasmo Recami some years ago. I take the opportunity here to thank most warmly for his enduring interest, encouragement, and kind willingness to make available the entire body of material he has collected, as well as his own personal experience. However, the English edition of this work would never have seen the light had it not been for Fabio Iocco’s enthusiastic involvement: besides encouraging me to publish, he also handled the first contact with the publisher. The translation by Laura Gentile de Fraia then brought the project into existence. Some interesting conversations with and suggestions by the Majorana family, particularly Ettore Majorana, Jr. (in Rome) and Fabio Majorana (in Catania), have been equally useful for the purposes of this reconstruction. A significant fraction of the inquiries into Majorana’s disappearance were carried out together with Roberto De Risi. I would thus thank him here for his invaluable collaboration, and also that of Gennaro Miele, on several occasions. Many colleagues and/or friends have contributed, directly or indirectly, to the acquisition or interpretation of the scientific and historical material used in this work. Among these I would like to remember, in particular, F. Acerra, L. Bonolis, G. Celentano, F. Claro, A. De Gregorio, V. De Luise, A. Drago, E. Giannetto, C. Moreno, W. Mück, S. Pastor, B. Preziosi, G. Salesi, G. Senatore, P.D. Serpico, and the journalist R. Cavallaro. Finally, I must thank the following for their collaboration: G. Paparo and L. Rossi from the Italian embassy in Buenos Aires, C.A. Barba from the Museo Postal y Telegrafos—Museo de Telecomunicaciones at the Correo Central in Buenos Aires, Anna Sicolo from the Polo Archivistico Sanitario of Regione Campania (Italy) and Edoardo Giaquinto and Giovanna Paola Perdonà, as well as the staff of several institutions: the Archives of the Accademia delle Scienze detta dei XL in Rome, the State Central Archives in Rome, the Archives of the University of Naples “Federico II”, the Library of the Department of Mathematics “Guido Castelnuovo” of the Sapienza University in Rome, the “Giovanni Spadolini” v vi Acknowledgements Library of the Senate of the Republic of Italy, the Deutsches Museum in Munich, ETH in Zurich, Niels Bohr Library, of the American Institute of Physics. Most of the material appearing here was discovered or collected for the first time by Prof. Erasmo Recami and then published by him (as specified in this book). Such material is therefore copyrighted and it is used here with the kind permission of the copyright owner. It cannot be further reproduced without their written consent. Contents Part I The Dostoyevskian Hero 1 An Archimedes from Sicily Studies in Rome................... 3 Music, Books, and Science for a Fine Humourist ................. 3 An Engineer’s Career ...................................... 6 Regia Scuola di Applicazione ................................ 11 Corbino’s Appeal and the School of Physics in Rome ............. 13 Fermi Passes an Exam ..................................... 16 Graduation in Physics ...................................... 18 2 A Certain Interest in Pure Science........................... 23 Theoretical Research ....................................... 23 The “Neutral Proton” and the Turning Point in 1932 .............. 26 A Trip to Leipzig ......................................... 30 Back in Rome ............................................ 36 Libero docente ........................................... 40 3 Ten Short Papers ........................................ 43 Tidying up the Spectra ..................................... 43 Molecular Bonds .......................................... 46 A Formula and a Multifaceted Theorem ........................ 48 Heisenberg Does Some Promotion (But not Too Much) ............ 51 Infinite Problems for Professor Pauli........................... 53 Pulling the Neutrino Out of a Hat ............................. 58 Something Unexpected ..................................... 61 Part II Power to the Italian School 4 The 1937 Opportunity..................................... 67 Majorana Applies for a Chair ................................ 67 Young Theoretical Physicists ................................ 68 vii viii Contents High and Well-Deserved Repute .............................. 71 Great Expectations ........................................ 74 5 Arrival in Naples......................................... 77 The First Three Days ...................................... 77 Innocent Souls............................................ 79 A Mathematician’s Interest .................................. 81 75 Days in Naples......................................... 82 The Storm ............................................... 87 Part III A Legacy from the Grand Inquisitor 6 The Mystery of the Missing Papers .......................... 93 The Director’sOffice....................................... 93 The Sidekick, the Assistant, and the Co-ed ...................... 95 The Folder Recovered ...................................... 97 The Missing Papers........................................ 100 The Adventures of Eugenio M. ............................... 102 7 Fortunes and Misfortunes of a Famous Director ............... 107 A Devastating Fire ........................................ 107 Rumours About a Powerful Man.............................. 109 Antonio Carrelli .......................................... 111 The Blue Colour of the Heavens.............................. 116 The Papers that Were Never Found ........................... 117 Part IV Investigation of a Disappearance 8 Before March 26 ......................................... 123 A Surprising Coincidence ................................... 123 Leaving the Port of Naples .................................. 125 A Matter of Money ........................................ 126 Clues from the Neapolitan Lectures ........................... 128 French Papers ............................................ 129 9 In Search of a Missing Professor ............................ 133 Getting the Search Started................................... 133 First Enquiries............................................ 135 The Political Police Enters the Scene .......................... 137 Pressure from the Ministry of Education ........................ 141 The Religious Lead ........................................ 144 A Fictional Interlude ....................................... 148 Contents ix 10 The Last Chapter ........................................ 151 News from Sicily ......................................... 151 A Curious Observation, but not Completely Crazy ................ 154 Nearing the End of the Enquiries in the Majorana Case ............ 157 A Lead from South America ................................. 159 On the Argentinian Trail .................................... 165 A Careful Analysis ........................................ 169 Epilogue.................................................... 173 References .................................................. 177 Bibliography ...............................................