THE ROYAL COMMISSION ON HISTORICAL MANUSCRIPTS Report on the correspondence and papers of FRANCIS WILLIAM ASTON (1877-1945) physicist and chemist in Department of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cambridge University Library Reproduced for the National Cataloguing Unit for the Archives of Contemporary Scientists (NCUACS101/6/01) by The Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts Quality House, Quality Court, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1HP 2002 All rights reserved No 7/02 NRA 43881 Catalogue of the papers and correspondenceof Francis William Aston FRS (1877-1945) by Peter Harper and Timothy E. Powell NCUACScatalogue no. 101/6/01 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 1 Title: Catalogue of the papers and correspondenceof Francis William Aston FRS (1877-1945), chemist Compiled by: Peter Harper and Timothy E. Powell Description level: Fonds Date of material: 1911-1945 Extent of material: 1 box, ca 70 items Depositedin: Department of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cambridge University Library Reference code: GB 0012 CUL © 2001National Cataloguing Unit for the Archives of Contemporary Scientists, University of Bath. NCUACS catalogue no. 101/6/01 F.W. Aston NCUACS101/6/01 The workof the National Cataloguing Unit for the Archives of Contemporary Scientists, and the production of this catalogue, are made possible by the support of the following societies and organisations: The Biochemical Society The British Crystallographic Association The Geological Society TheInstitute of Physics The Royal Society The Royal Society of Chemistry Trinity College Cambridge The Wellcome Trust F.W. Aston NCUACS101/6/01 NOT ALL THE MATERIALIN THIS COLLECTION MAY YET BE AVAILABLE FOR CONSULTATION. ENQUIRIES SHOULD BE ADDRESSEDIN THE FIRST INSTANCE TO: THE KEEPER OF MANUSCRIPTS AND UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WEST ROAD CAMBRIDGE F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 LIST OF CONTENTS GENERALINTRODUCTION Items Page SECTION A RESEARCH A.1-A.5 SECTION B ROYAL AIRCRAFT ESTABLISHMENT, FARNBOROUGH B.1-B.9 SECTION C PUBLICATIONS C.1-C.20 SECTION D INTERNATIONAL UNION OF CHEMISTRY D.1-D.10 SECTION E CORRESPONDENCE E.1-E.25 INDEX OF CORRESPONDENTS 10 12 14 17 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 GENERAL INTRODUCTION PROVENANCE 5 The papers were received for cataloguing from Cambridge University Library in November 2000. OUTLINE OF THE CAREER OF FRANCIS WILLIAM ASTON Francis William Aston was born at Harborne, near Birmingham on 1 September 1877. He was educated at Malvern College and Mason College (which later became the University of Birmingham) where he studied chemistry under P.F. Frankland and W.A. Tilden and Physics under J.H. Poynting. Awardedthe Forster scholarship he studied optical rotation with Frankland, 1898-1900. Aston then left academiclife for three years to work for a firm of brewers. However, he continued to research privately, particularly with discharge tubes. This work attracted the attention of Poynting and in 1903 Aston returned to Birmingham to continue his research in Poyntings department. At the end of 1909 he accepted an invitation from Sir J.J. Thomson to work as his assistant on positive rays at the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge. He took a B.A. degree by research in 1912 and in 1913 the university recognised his distinction in research by electing him as Clerk Maxwell student. It was during this period that he obtained definite evidence for the existence of two isotopes of the inert gas neon. Astons research was interrupted by the First World War during which he workedat the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, principally on aircraft fabrics and dopes (synthetic coatings). In 1919 he returned to the Cavendish Laboratory to research the separation of the isotopes of neon. This was accomplished by his invention of the mass spectrograph, an apparatus which enabled him to utilise the very slight differences in massof the two isotopes to effect their separation. He extended this principle to other chemical elements, discovering, in a series of measurements, 212 of the naturally occurring isotopes. From this work he formulated the whole number rule which states that, the mass of the oxygen isotope being defined, all the other isotopes have massesthat are very nearly whole numbers. In 1920 Aston was elected to the Fellowship of Trinity College Cambridge. He was elected FRSin 1921 (Hughes Medal 1922; Bakerian Lecture 1927), and in 1922 he was awardedthe Nobel Prize for chemistry for his discovery, by means of his mass spectrograph, of isotopes, in a large number of non-radioactive elements, and for his enunciation of the whole number rule. Astons interests in astronomy and photographyled to his membership of expeditions that studied eclipses in Sumatra (1925), Canada (1932) and Japan (1936). He served as President of the F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 6 International Union of Chemistry's Commission on Atoms, 1935-1945. He continuedto live and work in Cambridge, where he died on 20 November 1945. DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION The material in this small collection covers the period 1911-1945. It is presented in five sections in the ordergivenin the list of contents. Section A, Research, consists of four notebooks recording work on positive rays, 1911-1913, and a few unidentified manuscript calculations. Section B, Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, consists of reports on Astons work submitted to the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, 1917-1919 and a humorous account of wartime activities at Farnborough by an unidentified author. Section C, Publications, consists of manuscript and typescript drafts of a small number of Astons publications, illustrative material, off-prints by Aston 1919-1939, and a number of typescripts of papers byothers including W.H. Bragg, O.J. Lodge and W.J. Pope. Section D, International Union of Chemistry, consists of correspondence and papers, 1935-1945, relating to Astons Presidency of the Unions Commission on Atoms. Section E, Correspondence, consists of a chronological sequence of correspondencerelating to Astons scientific work, 1914, 1922-1945, and n.d. The sequence is predominantly incoming with a few manuscript drafts by Aston, some on the verso of incoming letters. It provides some documentation of Astons visits and conferences, especially a visit to the USA in 1922 to lecture at the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There is also an index of correspondents. P. Harper T.E. Powell Bath, 2001 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 SECTION A RESEARCH A.1-A.5 A.1 Notebook with label on front cover inscribed F.W. Aston Small Negs: 1-72. No.26 Oxygen is dated Jan 12. - 11 and a note that Apparatus [was] reconstructed with much finer canal tube and moreperfect isolation of the camera is dated Feb 1911. Almostall the work is undated. Enclosedat front is a card with typescript note Dr. F.W. Astons Research Dr. Aston was a Fellow of Trinity College Note Books on Positive Rays. [Cambridge] and worked in the Cavendish from 1909-1945. Notebookwith label on front cover inscribed F.W. Aston Small negs. 73- 101. No.80 follows a note that apparatus has been rebuilt dated Aug 1911. Work continues to March 1912 but almost all work is undated. - Notebook with label on front cover inscribed F.W. Aston 2 ¥2 x 4 negs 1 90. Inscribed on first page Positive Ray photographs 2¥2 x 4 F.W. Aston. Record of work from July 1912 to April 25" [1913]' with little later work undated Notebookwith label on front cover F.W. Aston 2 % x 4Negs 91-158. Record of work beginning May 16" [1913]. No.136 follows date Nov 1913. Many pages unused. Unidentified manuscript calculations, n.d A.2 A.3 A.4 A.5 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 SECTION B ROYAL AIRCRAFT ESTABLISHMENT, FARNBOROUGH B.1-B.9 B.1 B.2 B.3 B.4 B.5 Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on the Action of Sunlight on Aeroplane Fabric: Its Nature and Prevention by Aston. Report No. T.1019. Presented by the Superintendent, Royal Aircraft Factory, October 1917. 16pp duplicated typescript with some manuscript annotation + spectra and figures. Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on Some Strength Tests of Aeroplane Fabric Exposed to Weather and Their Relation to Sunlight Intensity by Aston. Report No. T.1112. Presented by the Superintendent, Royal Aircraft Factory, March 1918. 4pp duplicated typescript with some manuscript annotation + figures. Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on the Use of Neon Lamps for Stroboscopic Testing of Revolution Indicators by Aston. Report No. T.1118. Presented by the Superintendent, Royal Aircraft Factory, March 1918. 10pp duplicated typescript + figures. Counters in the title manuscript with the manuscript instruction to alter this throughout. is crossed out and replaced with Indicators in Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on the Comparative Weathering Qualities of British and German Doped Fabric. Report No. T.1158. Presented by the Director General of Aircraft Production, May 1918. 4pp duplicated typescript; proof with manuscript corrections of printed version. Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on the Measurement of Tautness of Doped Fabric by Aston. Report No. T.1273. Presented December 1918. by Controller, Technical Department, Aircraft Production, 12pp duplicated typescript + figures. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough B.6 B.7 B.8 B.9 Fabric & Dope with special reference to deterioration of strength and tautness. Abstract and 23pp typescript report by Aston, Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, January 1919. Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Report on Further Experiments upon the Action of Light on Fabric and its Prevention by Aston. Report No. 1298. Continuation of Report T.1019. Presented February 1919. by Controller, Technical Department, Aircraft Production, 6pp duplicated typescript + figure; printed version. The Book of Aeron commonly called Experimenter. the Revelations of Abah the Duplicated typescript of humorous account of wartime activities of the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, written in a style inspired by the Old Testamentwith illustrations inspired by various periods of antiquity. Manuscript notes and calculations probably relating to work at RoyalAircraft Establishment, Farnborough. Many of the notes are on headed notepaper for Chudleigh, Farnborough, Hants. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 SECTION C PUBLICATIONS 10 C.1-C.20 C.1 On the homogeneity of atmospheric Neon. 14pp typescript with manuscript additions and corrections, n.d. 1913 is the latest date given in the text which mayrelate, however, to The constitution of Atmospheric Neon, Phil. Mag., xxxix, April 1920, 449-455. See C.3. A positive Ray Spectrograph, Phil. Mag., xxxviii, December 1919, 707-714. 10pp typescript with manuscript additions and corrections. The constitution of Atmospheric Neon, Phil. Mag., xxxix, April 1920, 449- 455. 9pp typescript with manuscript additions and corrections, dated Cavendish Laboratory, [Cambridge], December 1919. The Mass spectra of the Alkali Metals, Phil. Mag., xlii, September 1921, 436-441. 9pp typescript with manuscript additions and corrections, dated Cavendish Laboratory, [Cambridge], May 1921. The Mass-Spectrum of Uranium Protactinium, Letter to the Editor, Nature, 123, 2 March 1929, 313. Lead and the Atomic Weight of Printed text only. C.2 C.3 C.4 C.5 C.6 Atomic Theory. Letter from J. Needham, enclosing the stenographers typescript of lecture on atomic theory given by Aston in the first terms working of the History of Science course, 25 November 1937. Title page and 21pp typescript of lecture. The lectures organised by the History of Science Committee for 1936 were published by Cambridge University Press in 1938. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 11 Publications C.7 C.8 C.9 Manuscript and typescript notes and drafts of account of the Cavendish Laboratory, [Cambridge], n.d. Shorter typescript drafts on Isotopes and the Periodic Law, Atoms and Isotopes (Summary), etc., n.d. Shorter manuscript notes on isotopes, etc., 1920 and n.d. C.10-C.12 Illustrative material. 3 folders. C.13 C.14 Correspondencere Astons off-prints, 1951-1955. Off-prints, 1919-1939. 1 bundle. Not a completeset. C.15-C.20 Typescripts of papers by others C.15 K.T. Bainbridge. C.16, C.17 Sir William H. Bragg. 2 folders. Sir Oliver Lodge. Sir William J. Pope. Unidentified. C.18 C.19 C.20 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 12 SECTION D INTERNATIONAL UNION OF CHEMISTRY D.1-D.10 Aston wasinvited to assume the Presidency of the International Union of Chemistry's International Commission on Atoms in March 1935. The other members of the Commission were Niels Bohr, University of Copenhagen, Otto Hahn, Friedrich Wilhelms Universitat, Berlin, W.D. Harkins, University of Chicago, and Georges Urbain, Laboratoire de Chemie Minérale, Sorbonne, Paris. The first task of the Commission under Astons Presidency was to undertake the publication of a table of isotopes. In 1937 M.L.E. Oliphant and R.S. Mulliken joined the Commission and in 1939 F. Joliot became a member in place of Urbain whohad recently died. The International Union of Chemistry was based in Paris where its Secretary General, Jean Gérard, was one of Astons principal correspondents. Despite the location of the Union in Paris and the international membership of the Commission, the Commission sought to continue workinto the first years of the Second World Warthrough the agencyof E. Briner of the Conseil de la Chemie Suisse, Geneva, Switzerland. Correspondence and papers, 1935-1945. D.1 1935 March - December. Includes invitation to Aston to serve as President of the Commission on Atoms and a provisional Table of Stable Isotopes sent by Aston to members of the Commission for their consideration. D.2 1936 January - December. Includes First Report of the Committee on Atoms of the International Union of Chemistry. Aston preferred the term Committee to Commission for the body of which he wasPresident. D.3 1937 March- July. Includes proofs of second report of the Committee on Atoms of the International Union of Chemistry. D.4 1938 March - December. Includes papers re Report 1938. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 13 International Union of Chemistry D.5, D.6 1939 March - October. 2 folders. D.6 includes printed versions of fourth report of the Committee in English, French and German. D.7 1940 January - April. Includes printed version of fourth report of the Committee with annotation ? forfifth report. D.8 D.9 1941 April - December. Includes typescript draft of sixth report for 1941. Not published. 1942 January - October. Includes manuscript and typescript drafts of Sixth Report of the Committee on Atoms. 1941, 1942. D.10 1944, 1945. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 14 SECTION E CORRESPONDENCE E.1-E.25 A chronological sequence of correspondence relating to Astons scientific work, 1914, 1922-1942, n.d. Predominantly incoming letters with a few manuscript drafts by Aston, some on verso of incoming letters. E.1 E.2 1914. 1 letter only. 1921. Includes invitation from Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for Aston to deliver a courseof five lectures in 1922 on his recent work. E.3-E.7 1922 February - July and n.d. [1922]. Correspondence predominantly relates to Astons visit to the USA to lecture at the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia. Aston gave a seriesoffive lectures on Atomic Weights and Isotopes at the Institute, 6-10 March. During his visit to the USA healso lectured at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts and Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. E.3 E.4 E.5 E.6 E.7 February 1922. March 1922. April 1922. June, July 1922. N.d. [1922]. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 15 Correspondence E.8 1923. Includesletter informing Aston of the award to him of the John Scott Medal of the City of Philadelphia. E:9 1924. Includes invitation in the form of a printed circular to the 105th annual meeting of the Swiss Natural Sciences Society, Lucerne, 1-4 October 1924. Aston gave a lecture on atomsandisotopes at the meeting. E.10 1925. programme for en Includes Geneeskundig Congres, Groningen, 14-16 April 1925. Aston gave a lecture on Isotopes and the Periodic Law. Nederlandsch Twintigste Natuur- the E.114 E.12 1926-1927. 1928-1929. Includes correspondence 1929 re visit to the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and to Malaya. E.13 1930-1931. Includes correspondence re physics meeting promoted by the Volta Foundation and held in Rome, 11-18 October 1931. E.14 1932. E.15-E.17 1932-1933 and n.d. Correspondence, drafts and spectra from K.T. Bainbridge of the Bartol Research Foundation of the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. See also C.15. 3 folders. F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 16 Correspondence E.17 includes 15pp typescript with manuscript additions and corrections entitled Description of a New Mass-Spectrograph including summary of scope and importance of workin relation to other fields. The typescript has a manuscript inscription at the head of the first page Submitted to National It is signed by Research Council as part of an application for a grant-in-aid. Bainbridge (p.15) but not dated (latest bibliographical reference 1933). 1934. 1935. 1936. Includes correspondencerevisit to Japan. 1937-1938. 1940. Includes correspondence and printed papers re the use of the mass spectrometer in the analysis of petroleum products. 1941. 1942. N.d. bivss E.18 E.19 E.20 E.21 E.22 E.23 E.24 E.25 17 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 INDEX OF CORRESPONDENTS ABRAHAM, Henri AMES, J.S ANDREI, lon ANGLO-IRANIAN OIL CO. LTD ASTON, Helen M. BAINBRIDGE, Kenneth T BAXTER, Gregory Paul BIRGE, RaymondT. BLEAKNEY,Walker BOARD OF DIRECTORSOF CITY TRUSTS, Philadelphia BOGERT, Marston Taylor BOHR, Niels BOUSQUET,J. BRAGG, Sir William Henry BRAGG, Sir (William) Lawrence BRINER, E. BRYDEN, Samuel D., Jr CHAMPETIER, G. COSTA,JosephL. DAVIS, Bergen DEMPSTER, Arthur J. DOCKSEY,Patrick DOUY, O. DUNN, F.P. E.18, E.20 E.4 E.14 E.22 C.13 C.15, E.15-E.17 E.11, E.23 D.2 E.19 E.8 D.7 D.5 D.4, D.5 See C.16, C.17 See C.13 D.8, D.9 E.13 D.4 E.114 E.18 E.2, E.8, E.19, E.20, E.23 E.22 E.6 E.6 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 18 Index of correspondents EAGLE, Albert EDWARD ARNOLD& CO. EGUCHI, FERMI, Enrico FLUGGE, S. FORBES, Alexander GERARD, Jean GEYELIN, Henry L. GLAISHER, James Whitbread Lee GLAZEBROOK,Sir Richard Tetley GOLDHABER, GRAY, Robert WHYTLAW - GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND FOREIGN OFFICE HAAS, [?W.J.] de HAHN, Otto HARDY,Godfrey Harold HARKINS, William D. HEILAND, Louis HEVESY, George de INTERNATIONAL UNION OF CHEMISTRY INTERNATIONAL UNION OF PURE AND APPLIED PHYSICS E.24 E.6 E.20 E.13 D.5 E.4 D.1-D.5, D.7, D.10 E.7 E.9 E.19 See also E.18 E.24 E.23 E.8 E.10 D.1, D.2, D.4, D.5 E.25 D.1, D.3, D.4, D.7 E.8 E.14 D.1-D.7, D.10 E.18, E.20 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 JAEGER, F.M. JOLIOT, Frédéric KNIPP, C.T. KOHLWEILER, Emil LANGMUIR, Irving LODGE, Sir Oliver Joseph LYMAN, Theodore MARCONI, Guglielmo MATTAUCH, Josef MERRITT,E. MICHELSON, Albert Abraham MORISON, Sir Theodore MULLIKEN, Robert Sanderson NATURE NEEDHAM, Joseph 19 Index of correspondents E.10 D.7 E.3 E.2 E.3 C.18 E.4 E.13 D.5, E.21 E.4 E.3 E.9 D.3-D.5, D.7 See D.9 C.6 OLIPHANT, Sir Mark (Marcus Laurence Elwin) D.5, D.7, E.21 OWENS, R.B. PEGRAM, George B. PIGGOT, Charles S. POPE, Sir William Jackson E.2 E.5 E.11, £.12 See C.19 F.W. Aston NCUACS 101/6/01 20 Index of correspondents SCHWYZER, Fritz SCOTT, Arthur F. SMITH, Sir Frank Edward STONEY,Edith A. TAYLOR, D.D. THE TIMES E.8, E.9 E.12 E.22 E.9 E.22 E.12 UNION INTERNATIONALEDE CHIMIE See International Union of Chemistry UNION INTERNATIONALE DE PHYSIQUE PURE ET APPLIQUEE See International Union of Pure and Applied Physics UNITED GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY URBAIN, Georges WARD, R.M. BARRINGTON- WATSON, H.E. WILSON, W. E.22 D.1, D.2 E.12 E.12 E.3, E.5
Aston Francis William
Published: 13 September, 2023 Author: admin