Hedwig Kohn, Physicist

Hedwig Kohn soon recognized that she must leave Germany in response to Kristallnacht. With help from Rudolf Ladenburg and the International Federation of University Women, she secured teaching positions at several U.S. institutions: Women’s College at the University of North Carolina, Sweet Briar College (Virginia), and Wellesley College (Massachusetts).

Hedwig Kohn’s Life and Work

Hedwig Kohn was one of the world’s most influential physicists and was an early pioneer for women in science. After attaining her habilitation, she became an early trailblazer for female scientists in Germany. However, due to her Jewish background and Nazi laws, she was targeted and dismissed from her job at Breslau.

Her Research

Kohn persevered despite gender and religious discrimination to become one of the leading scientists of her time. After earning her doctorate in 1913, she worked under Otto Lummer on precision measurements that contributed to the formulation of Planck’s radiation law. During World War I, she took on teaching and advising responsibilities and received a medal for her services. In 1930, she earned habilitation and continued her research on flame spectroscopy, making significant contributions to combustion science and plasma physics.

Her Teaching

Kohn had a passion for teaching and was dedicated to her students. She started auditing university classes in Breslau in 1907 and earned her doctorate in physics in 1913. She served as a research assistant for Otto Lummer and later became a highly respected professor at Wellesley College. She broke down barriers for women in STEM fields and established her research laboratory.

Her Legacy

Hedwig Kohn made immense contributions to physics and inspired generations of students. Google Doodle by Carolin Lobbert celebrates her achievements on what would have been her 132nd birthday. Her research involved quantitative light intensity measurements and emissions from atoms and molecules. She published influential physics textbooks and earned a patent. After leaving Germany, she taught at Women’s College of the University of North Carolina and Wellesley College while continuing her research in flame spectroscopy and radiometry.

Rudolf Ladenburg’s Help

Rudolf Ladenburg played a significant role in helping Hedwig Kohn immigrate to the United States. He facilitated her connections and negotiated her teaching position at Aberdeen University in Scotland before she eventually settled in the U.S.