Untersuchungen über die radioaktiven Substanzen von Marie Curie, übersetzt und mit Litteratur-Ergänzungen versehen von W. Kaufmann

The book opens with a concise historical sketch that places the discovery of uranium rays and the early work of Becquerel at the foundation of a rapidly growing field. It follows the joint investigations of Marie Curie and her collaborators as they set out to isolate and characterize the novel radioactive substances emerging from laboratory crucibles across Europe. The narrative conveys the spirit of cooperation and the careful sharing of samples that marked the era.

Organized into five detailed chapters, the work moves from the basic radioactivity of uranium and thorium through the isolation of polonium, radium and actinium, describing the experimental methods used to measure intensity, spectrum and charge of the emitted rays. It then explores the nature of α and β radiation, their interaction with magnetic and electric fields, and the peculiar heat, fluorescence and chemical effects they produce. Later sections examine induced radioactivity, the role of gases and emanations, and the theoretical attempts to explain these phenomena, offering a snapshot of early twentieth‑century physics.