Perley Ason Ross Explained

Perley Ason Ross (6 April 1883 – 13 March 1939) was a U.S. experimental physicist who worked, carefully and without seeking publicity, at some essential problems in the behaviour of X-rays.^[1]

Born in Panacea, Missouri he was awarded his PhD from Stanford University in 1911, becoming a full professor there in 1927, after a year at Cornell University.^[1]

Some of his principal studies included:

• Scattering of X-rays by matter;^[1]
• Development of the Ross differential filter for X-ray spectroscopy;^[1]
• X-ray polarization;^[1]
• Compton scattering

^[2] and

• Radiative Auger effect.^[3]

His daughter, Betsy, married fellow Stanford physicist William Webster Hansen.^[4]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Webster, D. L. . Memorial Resolution Perley Ason Ross (1883 – 1938) . Stanford University . 2007-08-12 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060916231250/http://histsoc.stanford.edu/pdfmem/RossP.pdf . 2006-09-16 .
2. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences . Ross, P. A. . Change in Wave-length by Scattering. 1923 . 9 . 7 . 246–248 . 1923PNAS....9..246R . 10.1073/pnas.9.7.246 . 1085368 . 16576710. free .
3. 10.1103/PhysRev.47.884. 47. 11. 884–885. Bloch. F.. P. A. Ross. Radiative Auger Effect. Physical Review. 2010-10-24. 1935-06-01. 1935PhRv...47..884B .
4. Süsskind, C. (1981) "Hansen, William Webster" in Book: Gillespie, C.C. (ed.) . 1981 . New York . Dictionary of Scientific Biography . Charles Screibner's Sons . 0-684-16970-3 . 495–496 .