PHYSICIST
Arnold Sommerfeld
1868 - 1951

Arnold Sommerfeld
Arnold Johannes Wilhelm Sommerfeld (German: [ˈaʁnɔlt joˈhanəs ˈvɪlhɛlm ˈzɔmɐˌfɛlt]; 5 December 1868 – 26 April 1951) was a German theoretical physicist who pioneered developments in atomic and quantum physics, and also educated and mentored many students for the new era of theoretical physics. He served as doctoral advisor and postdoc advisor to seven Nobel Prize winners and supervised at least 30 other famous physicists and chemists. Only J. J. Thomson's record of mentorship offers a comparable list of high-achieving students. He introduced the second quantum number, azimuthal quantum number, and the third quantum number, magnetic quantum number. Read more on Wikipedia
His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Arnold Sommerfeld is the 119th most popular physicist (down from 116th in 2019), the 109th most popular biography from Russia (up from 141st in 2019) and the 5th most popular Russian Physicist.
Arnold Sommerfeld is most famous for his contributions to quantum mechanics, as well as his work on atomic spectra.
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Among PHYSICISTS
Among physicists, Arnold Sommerfeld ranks 119 out of 851. Before him are Jagadish Chandra Bose, Heinrich Rohrer, Walther Bothe, Peter Grünberg, Willis Lamb, and Ernst Ruska. After him are François Arago, Albert Fert, Owen Chamberlain, Anders Jonas Ångström, Joseph von Fraunhofer, and Rosalyn Sussman Yalow.
Most Popular Physicists in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsJagadish Chandra Bose
1858 - 1937
HPI: 75.36
Rank: 113
Heinrich Rohrer
1933 - 2013
HPI: 75.31
Rank: 114
Walther Bothe
1891 - 1957
HPI: 75.26
Rank: 115
Peter Grünberg
1939 - 2018
HPI: 75.22
Rank: 116
Willis Lamb
1913 - 2008
HPI: 75.21
Rank: 117
Ernst Ruska
1906 - 1988
HPI: 75.15
Rank: 118
Arnold Sommerfeld
1868 - 1951
HPI: 75.11
Rank: 119
François Arago
1786 - 1853
HPI: 75.09
Rank: 120
Albert Fert
1938 - Present
HPI: 74.95
Rank: 121
Owen Chamberlain
1920 - 2006
HPI: 74.94
Rank: 122
Anders Jonas Ångström
1814 - 1874
HPI: 74.91
Rank: 123
Joseph von Fraunhofer
1787 - 1826
HPI: 74.83
Rank: 124
Rosalyn Sussman Yalow
1921 - 2011
HPI: 74.82
Rank: 125
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1868, Arnold Sommerfeld ranks 14. Before him are John Nance Garner, Abdulmejid II, W. E. B. Du Bois, Robert Andrews Millikan, Constantine I of Greece, and Emanuel Lasker. After him are James Connolly, Gichin Funakoshi, Émile Bernard, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, Fuad I of Egypt, and Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse. Among people deceased in 1951, Arnold Sommerfeld ranks 8. Before him are Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, André Gide, Philippe Pétain, Arnold Schoenberg, Ferdinand Porsche, and Wilhelm, German Crown Prince. After him are Abdullah I of Jordan, Otto Fritz Meyerhof, René Guénon, Hermann Broch, August Horch, and Sinclair Lewis.
Others Born in 1868
Go to all RankingsJohn Nance Garner
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1967
HPI: 78.15
Rank: 8
Abdulmejid II
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1944
HPI: 77.78
Rank: 9
W. E. B. Du Bois
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1868 - 1963
HPI: 77.66
Rank: 10
Robert Andrews Millikan
PHYSICIST
1868 - 1953
HPI: 76.61
Rank: 11
Constantine I of Greece
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1923
HPI: 76.14
Rank: 12
Emanuel Lasker
CHESS PLAYER
1868 - 1941
HPI: 75.53
Rank: 13
Arnold Sommerfeld
PHYSICIST
1868 - 1951
HPI: 75.11
Rank: 14
James Connolly
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1916
HPI: 74.85
Rank: 15
Gichin Funakoshi
MARTIAL ARTS
1868 - 1957
HPI: 74.41
Rank: 16
Émile Bernard
PAINTER
1868 - 1941
HPI: 74.40
Rank: 17
Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg
COMPANION
1868 - 1914
HPI: 74.38
Rank: 18
Fuad I of Egypt
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1936
HPI: 74.17
Rank: 19
Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse
POLITICIAN
1868 - 1940
HPI: 74.05
Rank: 20
Others Deceased in 1951
Go to all RankingsCarl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim
POLITICIAN
1867 - 1951
HPI: 81.28
Rank: 2
André Gide
WRITER
1869 - 1951
HPI: 81.05
Rank: 3
Philippe Pétain
POLITICIAN
1856 - 1951
HPI: 81.00
Rank: 4
Arnold Schoenberg
COMPOSER
1874 - 1951
HPI: 79.61
Rank: 5
Ferdinand Porsche
DESIGNER
1875 - 1951
HPI: 78.49
Rank: 6
Wilhelm, German Crown Prince
POLITICIAN
1882 - 1951
HPI: 76.73
Rank: 7
Arnold Sommerfeld
PHYSICIST
1868 - 1951
HPI: 75.11
Rank: 8
Abdullah I of Jordan
POLITICIAN
1882 - 1951
HPI: 75.10
Rank: 9
Otto Fritz Meyerhof
PHYSICIAN
1884 - 1951
HPI: 74.48
Rank: 10
René Guénon
WRITER
1886 - 1951
HPI: 73.00
Rank: 11
Hermann Broch
WRITER
1886 - 1951
HPI: 71.16
Rank: 12
August Horch
ENGINEER
1868 - 1951
HPI: 70.87
Rank: 13
Sinclair Lewis
WRITER
1885 - 1951
HPI: 70.21
Rank: 14
In Russia
Among people born in Russia, Arnold Sommerfeld ranks 109 out of 3,761. Before him are Nikolai Bukharin (1888), Ilya Prigogine (1917), Sofia Kovalevskaya (1850), Nikolai Yezhov (1895), Mikhail Bakhtin (1895), and Mikhail Botvinnik (1911). After him are Tokhtamysh (1342), Svetlana Alliluyeva (1926), Mikhail Lermontov (1814), Mikhail Tukhachevsky (1893), Yevgeny Prigozhin (1961), and Grigory Potemkin (1739).
Others born in Russia
Go to all RankingsNikolai Bukharin
POLITICIAN
1888 - 1938
HPI: 75.51
Rank: 103
Ilya Prigogine
CHEMIST
1917 - 2003
HPI: 75.46
Rank: 104
Sofia Kovalevskaya
MATHEMATICIAN
1850 - 1891
HPI: 75.24
Rank: 105
Nikolai Yezhov
POLITICIAN
1895 - 1940
HPI: 75.17
Rank: 106
Mikhail Bakhtin
PHILOSOPHER
1895 - 1975
HPI: 75.17
Rank: 107
Mikhail Botvinnik
CHESS PLAYER
1911 - 1995
HPI: 75.14
Rank: 108
Arnold Sommerfeld
PHYSICIST
1868 - 1951
HPI: 75.11
Rank: 109
Tokhtamysh
POLITICIAN
1342 - 1406
HPI: 75.06
Rank: 110
Svetlana Alliluyeva
WRITER
1926 - 2011
HPI: 75.06
Rank: 111
Mikhail Lermontov
WRITER
1814 - 1841
HPI: 74.97
Rank: 112
Mikhail Tukhachevsky
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1893 - 1937
HPI: 74.93
Rank: 113
Yevgeny Prigozhin
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1961 - 2023
HPI: 74.76
Rank: 114
Grigory Potemkin
POLITICIAN
1739 - 1791
HPI: 74.76
Rank: 115
Among PHYSICISTS In Russia
Among physicists born in Russia, Arnold Sommerfeld ranks 5. Before him are Gustav Kirchhoff (1824), Wilhelm Wien (1864), Andrei Sakharov (1921), and Mikhail Lomonosov (1711). After him are Pavel Cherenkov (1904), Ilya Frank (1908), Igor Tamm (1895), Alexei Alexeyevich Abrikosov (1928), Pyotr Kapitsa (1894), Vitaly Ginzburg (1916), and Nikolay Basov (1922).
Gustav Kirchhoff
1824 - 1887
HPI: 79.22
Rank: 1
Wilhelm Wien
1864 - 1928
HPI: 78.90
Rank: 2
Andrei Sakharov
1921 - 1989
HPI: 78.11
Rank: 3
Mikhail Lomonosov
1711 - 1765
HPI: 75.69
Rank: 4
Arnold Sommerfeld
1868 - 1951
HPI: 75.11
Rank: 5
Pavel Cherenkov
1904 - 1990
HPI: 74.18
Rank: 6
Ilya Frank
1908 - 1990
HPI: 72.03
Rank: 7
Igor Tamm
1895 - 1971
HPI: 71.97
Rank: 8
Alexei Alexeyevich Abrikosov
1928 - 2017
HPI: 71.73
Rank: 9
Pyotr Kapitsa
1894 - 1984
HPI: 71.40
Rank: 10
Vitaly Ginzburg
1916 - 2009
HPI: 70.47
Rank: 11
Nikolay Basov
1922 - 2001
HPI: 70.38
Rank: 12