Pyotr Kapitsa was an engineer and innovator. Known for his work in low-temperature physics, the study of ultra-strong magnetic fields, and high-temperature plasma confinement.
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Pyotr Kapitsa belongs to the great generation of Soviet physicists. Nicknamed the 'Russian atomic tsar' in the West, he headed the leading physics institute of the USSR for many years, where outstanding scientists worked.
Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa was born on June 26 (July 9) 1894 in Kronstadt into a noble family. His father was a military engineer, and his mother was a teacher and folklorist. Childhood interests in clocks and engineering led to the choice of profession as an experimental physicist. In 1912, he graduated from a real school and entered the Polytechnic Institute.
Kapitsa studied under the guidance of A.F. Ioffe. During his studies, he participated in World War I and traveled to China and Japan. Kapitsa's first publications appeared in 1916. He graduated from the institute in 1919, becoming an electrical engineer, and began working at the Physico-Technical Institute.
In 1920, Kapitsa joined a group of promising physicists under the leadership of A.F. Ioffe. In 1921, he went to the Cavendish Laboratory in London, where he worked with Rutherford. His research in low-temperature physics led to the discovery of helium superfluidity. In 1934, he remained in the USSR and headed the Institute for Physical Problems.
Kapitsa was married twice. The first marriage ended tragically, the second — with Anna Krylov — was long and happy. The couple had two sons who became famous scientists. Kapitsa was a witty storyteller and maintained English habits in everyday life.
Kapitsa died on April 8, 1984, from a stroke. He was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
Kapitsa made a significant contribution to low-temperature physics, ultra-strong magnetic fields, and plasma physics. His discoveries and instruments revolutionized research methods in these fields.
Kapitsa received numerous awards, including the Nobel Prize in Physics (1978), Stalin Prizes, and medals from Franklin and Faraday. He was an honorary member of many academies and universities around the world.
Chairman of the Academic Council of the Institute for Physical Problems of the USSR Academy of Sciences Pyotr Kapitsa (left) during the defense of a dissertation by researcher D. Astrov (right). 1963.
Petya Kapitsa, older brother Leonid and mother Olga Ieronimovna Kapitsa. Kronstadt. 1899.
Kronstadt Real School card.
P. Kapitsa with physicist colleagues in Cambridge. Left to right: Blackett, Kapitsa, Langevin, Rutherford in Cambridge, 1921.
Kapitsa in the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge.
Pyotr Kapitsa in the 1930s.
Presentation of the Calcutta University Medal to Soviet physicist Pyotr Kapitsa for services to world science. Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences Pyotr Kapitsa (left) shows guests the award at an evening at the Embassy of India in Moscow. 1957.
Pyotr Kapitsa, founder of the Institute for Physical Problems (IPP), academician, Nobel Prize laureate in Physics (1978). 1963.
Hero of Socialist Labor, full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, physicist Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa, awarded the Niels Bohr Gold Medal, after the award ceremony. 1964.
Physicist Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa in his office. 1964.
Presentation of the International Niels Bohr Gold Medal to Soviet physicist Pyotr Kapitsa. Left to right: President of the USSR Academy of Sciences Academician Mstislav Keldysh, Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences Pyotr Kapitsa and President of the Danish Engineering Society Poul Malmström. 1965.
Academician Pyotr Kapitsa presents a report on his scientific discovery at the Committee for Inventions under the Council of Ministers of the USSR. 1970.
Academician Pyotr Kapitsa with his wife Anna. Photo by Alexander Katkov. 1973.
In the workshop at the dacha. 1975.
1982.
1982.
At the dacha in the Moscow region. 1984.