Spinthariscope

Description:

A spinthariscope consists of a fluorescent screen, a magnifying eyepiece, and a speck of radium. By looking through the eyepiece, one sees scintillations caused by alpha particles from the radium hitting the screen. William Crookes, a prominent English chemist, designed the form in 1903, coined the term (deriving it from the Greek word for scintillation), and arranged for its manufacture. The inscription on this example reads “UNITED STATES RADIUM CORPS. / NEW YORK.”

Date Made: 1920s?

Location: Currently not on view

See more items in: Medicine and Science: Modern Physics

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Credit Line: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Department of Chemistry

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 1994.0125.18Accession Number: 1994.0125Catalog Number: 1994.0125.18

Object Name: Spinthariscope

Physical Description: metal; glass; leather; radioactive source (overall material)Measurements: overall: 4.2 cm x 4.8 cm; 1 5/8 in x 1 7/8 in

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b2-a74d-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_472811

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