Eugen Goldstein was born on September 5, 1850 in Gleiwitz, Upper Silesia, now

Gliwice Poland. He studied physics Breslau for one year, then under Hermann von

Helmoltz in , who was also a physicist. He worked on research at the Berlin

Observatory from 1878 until 1890 ("Goldstein, eugen," ), (Soylent

Communications, 2011) . At the Berlin Observatory he worked on the relations

between electricity and cosmic phenomena and managed to reproduce comet tails in

gas discharge tubes (Hedens M. 2002). In 1927 he was appointed head of the

astrophysical section of Potsdam Observatory ("Goldstein, eugen," ).

The work that Goldstein did with cathode rays was very important to his future

experiments, during one these experiments he discovered the proton. Goldstein proved

that cathode rays could induce chemical reactions that are normally caused by sunlight,

known as photochemical reactions, he also proved that the features of the rays were not

due to the material of which the cathode was made (Oracle think quest). Eugen

Goldstein died on December 25, 1930 in Berlin, Germany, he was eighty years old.

Before Goldstein’s experiment it was believed that the atom resembled a billiard ball, a small solid sphere. It was believed that the atoms had had different pieces and was not a whole, as had been suggested by John Dalton. Before Goldstein’s discovery it was believed that the atom was made up of that were meshed together

(Carpi, 2003).

During his experiment Goldstein believed that since an atom was electrically

neutral there must be a balancing particle, since they had already discovered the

existence of the negatively charged particle there had to be a positive particle

(Learning Hub).

Tuesday, November 08, 2011 Goldstein used a perforated in a discharge tube in his experiment.

He filled the discharge tube with very low pressure hydrogen. When a high voltage of about 10,000 volts was applied to this cathode in the discharge tube a faint red glow was observed behind the perforated cathode. The rays were formed at the anode and when these rays struck the walls of the discharge tube behind the anode they produced a faint red light. Since the rays were formed at the positive electrode or anode they were known as anode rays or positive rays (Tutor Vista.com).

He discovered what he termed canal rays, which were essentially rays moving in

the opposite direction to the cathode rays of electrons. Goldstein believed the particles

he found in his experiment to be protons as the positively charged particle was later

named, but were actually positively charged ions (Learning Hub). The positive

particle had a charge equal and opposite to the .

Despite Goldstein’s success in finding what he came to call the proton, but was

really a positively charged ion, the results of his experiment would not be accepted until

Lord Rutherford’s experiment, where he did something very similar but on a much larger

scale. After Goldstein’s experiment J.J. Thomson theorized that atoms looked like

pieces of raisin bread, a structure in which clumps of small, negatively charged

electrons, the raisins, were scattered inside a smear of positive charges. This was later

proved incorrect by Lord Ernest Rutherford (Carpi, 2003). Sadly even today

Goldstein isn’t widely recognized for his work.

Tuesday, November 08, 2011 Bibliography

Goldstein, eugen . (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/Biographies/Mai nBiographi es/G/Goldstein/1.html --Dates retrieved from: “Eugen Goldstein was born on September 5, 1850 in Gleiwitz, Upper Silesia, now Poland. He studied physics Breslau for one year, then under Hermann von Helmoltz in Berlin, who was also a physicist. He worked on research at the Berlin Observatory from 1878 until 1890”

Soylent Communications, Initials. (2011). Eugen goldstein 2 . Retrieved from http://www.nndb.com/people/887/00016 9380/ --“At the Berlin Observatory he worked on the relations between electricity and cosmic phenomena and managed to reproduce comet tails in gas discharge tubes”

Hedenus, M. (2002, December 2). Eugen goldstein . Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/152 1 - 3994(200212)323:6%3C567::AID-ASNA567%3E3.0.CO;2- 7/abstract --“In 1927 he was appointed head of the astrophysical section of Potsdam Observatory”

Goldstein, eugen . (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/Biographies/Mai nBiographi es/G/Goldstein/1.html --“Goldstein proved that cathode rays could induce chemical reactions that are normally caused by sunlight, known as photochemical reactions, he also proved that the features of the rays were not due to the material of which the cathode was made”

Oracle think quest, Initials. (n.d.). The cathode rays . Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/19662/high/eng/cathod erays.html --“Before Goldstein’s experiment it was believed that the atom resembled a billiard ball, a small solid sphere. It was believed that the atoms had had different pieces and was not a whole, as had been suggested by John Dalton. Before Goldstein’s discovery it was believed that the atom was made up of electrons that were meshed together”

Carpi, Anthony. (2003). Atomic theory i . Retrieved from http://www.visionlearning.com/library/module_viewer .php?mid=5 0 --“During his experiment Goldstein believed that since an atom was electrically neutral there must be a balancing particle, since they had already discovered the existence of the negatively charged particle there had to be a positive particle”

Learning Hub, Initials. (n.d.). History of the atomic theory part 4 . Retrieved from http://chemistry.learnhub.com/less o n / 3 6 9 3 - history-of-the-atomic-theory-part-4 --“Goldstein used a perforated cathode ray in a discharge tube in his experiment. He filled the discharge tube with very low pressure hydrogen. When a high voltage of about 10,000 volts was applied to this cathode in the discharge tube a faint red glow was observed behind the perforated cathode. The rays were formed at the anode and when these rays struck the walls of the discharge tube behind the anode

Tuesday, November 08, 2011 they produced a faint red light. Since the rays were formed at the positive electrode or anode they were known as anode rays or positive rays”

Tutor Vista.com, Initials. (n.d.). Structure of the atom . Retrieved from http://www.tutorvista.com/content/science/science-i /structure- atom/search-particles-electrons.php --“He discovered what he termed canal rays, which were essentially rays moving in the opposite direction to the cathode rays of electrons. Goldstein believed the particles he found in his experiment to be protons as the positively charged particle was later named, but were actually positively charged ions”

Learning Hub, Initials. (n.d.). History of the atomic theory part 4 . Retrieved from http://chemistry.learnhub.com/less o n / 3 6 9 3 - history-of-the-atomic-theory-part-4 --“Despite Goldstein’s success in finding what he came to call the proton, but was really a positively charged ion, the results of his experiment would not be accepted until Lord Rutherford’s experiment, where he did something very similar but on a much bigger scale. After Goldstein’s experiment J.J. Thomson theorized that atoms looked like pieces of raisin bread, a structure in which clumps of small, negatively charged electrons, the raisins, were scattered inside a smear of positive charges. This was later proved incorrect by Lord Ernest Rutherford”

Carpi, Anthony. (2003). Atomic theory i . Retrieved from http://www.visionlearning.com/library/module_viewer .php?mid=5 0

Other Sources

Syvum, Initials. (n.d.). Chemistry: atom, atomic structur . Retrieved from http://www.syvum.com/cgi/online/serve.cgi/squizzes/ chem/atomi c1.html

Goalfinder, Initials. (2007). Discovery of proton . Retrieved from http://www.goalfinder.com/product.asp?productid=106

Study Villa, Initials. (n.d.). Atomic structure . Retrieved from http://www.studyvilla.com/atomicstructure.aspx http://www.studyvilla.com/atomicstructure.aspx . (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.columbia.edu/itc/chemistry/chem- c2507/navbar/chemhist.html

Eugen Goldstein I . (n.d.). Retrieved from http://chemed.chem.purdue.edu/genchem/history/golds tein.html http://chemed.chem.purdue.edu/genchem/history/goldstein.html

Smoot, R.C., Smith, R.G., Price, J., & Russo, T. (1 998). Merrill chemistry . United States: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill.

Tuesday, November 08, 2011