author
Robert Andrews Millikan
1868–1953
Best known for the famous oil-drop experiment, this Nobel Prize-winning physicist helped pin down the charge of the electron and shaped modern experimental physics. He also played a major role in building the California Institute of Technology into a leading research center.
1 Audiobook
The electron, its isolation and measurement and the determination of some of its properties
by Robert Andrews Millikan
About the author
Born in Illinois in 1868, Robert Andrews Millikan became one of the most prominent American physicists of the early 20th century. He studied at Oberlin College and later taught at the University of Chicago, where his careful experiments brought him international attention.
Millikan is most closely linked with the oil-drop experiment, which gave a precise value for the electron’s charge. He was awarded the 1923 Nobel Prize in Physics for that work and for his research on the photoelectric effect, both of which were important to the development of modern physics.
Beyond the laboratory, he was an influential science administrator and educator. As a leader at Caltech for many years, he helped transform the school into a major center for scientific research and teaching.