Magnet Academy: Peter Debye

Peter Debye carried out pioneering studies of molecular dipole moments, formulated theories of magnetic cooling and of electrolytic dissociation, and developed an X-ray diffraction technique for use with powdered, rather than crystallized, substances. For his work with dipole moments, the vector quantities related to the distribution of electric charges are measured in debyes. Also, in recognition of a number of his scientific contributions, Debye received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1936.