1932-1934 Early Handwritten Research of Renowned X-Ray and Optics Physicist Dr. Roy Clarence Spencer

On offer is an incredible piece of American scientific history, being two years’ worth of the original handwritten research of renowned physicist, Dr. Roy Clarence Spencer (1901-1981). This research was conducted in the Brace Laboratory during Dr. Spencer’s tenure at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Spencer specialized in X-rays and optics. He was known as, “a pioneer in the application of optics and Fourier method to designs of microwave antennas [and]...research on x-rays with double x-ray spectrometers…[he] was one of the early scientists to work with the US space program” (Huntley, 2003). His illustrious career took him to Cornell, Columbia, the Westinghouse Lamp Company, Nebraska, MIT and the Air Force Research Centre. SEE FULL BIO NOTES AT THE END OF THE LISTING.

This research notebook was meticulously kept by Dr. Spencer from January 1932 through February 1934. He has created a table of contents at the beginning, indicating the topic of research and date it was recorded. This research was conducted early in Dr. Spencer’s career, beginning only one year after he completed his PhD and was hired by the University of Nebraska as a physics lecturer. It includes his handwritten calculations, notes about his research process, diagrams of his research set-ups including revisions to those set-ups, drafts of his designs and much more. 

Some of the many topics Dr. Spencer covers in this research book are:

Shunt Theory, Ayrton; Charging X-Ray Fila Battery from DC Generator; Coil Capacity - Transformer Secondary; Wire Carrying Capacity - Trans Tests; Resistance Tap Water ¼ inch Rubber Tube 11 foot long 1.8 megs; Water flow in cooling circuit, heating of water; Battery switch board and control circuits - obsolete; Theory of Fine Adjustment of Resistance; Meyer X-Ray Test Ip, KVM…

This research is a primary source of the early, pre-war work of a scientist who would go on to make a major impact on the physics community in the United States (and, more quietly, on the world). To the eye of a trained physicist or one interested in the development of science in America, this research notebook provides a wealth of knowledge as to the work being done in the decade before the second World War. This would make an incredible addition to any university physics department library for use with students whose work may be building on the early work of Dr. Spencer. 

BIO NOTES: Roy Clarence Spencer was born in Pennellville, New York. He graduated from Phoenix High School in 1918 and received his A.B. degree from Cornell in physics and mathematics in 1922. He was a member of Sigma Xi. Spencer worked as a fellow in astronomy at Swarthmore College from 1922-1923. He became a research assistant in X-Rays at Cornell in 1923-24 under F. K. Richtmyer, and was selected as The President White Fellow of physics at Cornell from 1924-1925. In 1926, Spencer took a job at the Westinghouse Lamp Company in New Jersey as a Radio Tube Development Engineer. In 1927, he left to teach physics at Columbia University. At Columbia he worked under Dr. Bergen Davis, researching X-ray spectroscopy. He completed his PhD in Experimental Physics, Theoretical Physics, Mathematics at Columbia in 1931, and took an Instructor of Physics job at the University of Nebraska, where he worked for 10 years, teaching physics, X-rays and optics. He was promoted to Assistant Professor. In 1941 he left Nebraska and worked at the Radiation Laboratory at MIT, collaborating on research in antennas. During WW2, research by Spencer was used to design an antenna that was classified by both the US and UK governments. In 1946 he became the Chief of the Antenna lab at the Air Force Cambridge Research Center of the Air Research and Development command. He was a member of the American Physical Society, the Optical Society of America, the American Mathematical Society, Association for Computing Machinery, Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Institute of Radio Engineers, Chairman of the Working Group on Microwave Optics in the International Radio Scientific Union, and more. In his personal life, Dr. Spencer married May Blanche Wheelwright (1899-1976) of New Jersey in June of 1929. Together they had two children, Dana Royce and Barbara Jane (later Paape). 

This notebook measures 10 inches by 8 inches and contains 118 pages. It is 95% complete. The covers are in good condition and attached. The spine is made with an external taped spine; however, the back cover has separated on the inside from the book. The pages are all intact and in good condition. The writing is legible. Overall Fair+. 

Reference 

Huntley, P. W. (2003, October 13). Schroeppel. https://doi.org/10.1604/9780738513089