• CONTENT:
  Preface (3).
  Hydrogen atom. Quantum numbers (5).
  Spectrum of the hydrogen atom (15).
  Magnetic moments (19).
  Basic principles of quantum mechanics (27).
  Radio emission from hydrogen at a wavelength of 21.1 cm (30).
  Deuterium, tritium, neutron (35).
  Positron, antiproton, antineutron, antihydrogen (38).
  Heavy nuclei (49).
  Characteristic particle sizes (52).
  Nuclear forces. Pi mesons (pions) (55).
  Uncertainty relations and virtual processes (59).
  Nuclear forces (continued) (65).
  Virtual processes and nucleon structure (77).
  Strong, electromagnetic and weak interactions (82).
  Parity, its conservation and non-conservation (88).
  Vacuum polarization (95).
  List of elementary particles having a specific location
  in the structure of matter (100).
  Photon (101).
  Leptons (104).
  Neutrino (104).
  Muons (115).
  Electronic shells of atoms (120).
  Quantum amplifiers (masers and lasers) (129).
  Optical quantum generator (OKG, laser) using CO2 (139).
  Semiconductor optical quantum generators (lasers) (142).
  Negative absolute temperatures (145).
  Nuclear fusion reactions (149).
  Droplet model of the nucleus and fission reaction (154).
  Shell model of the nucleus (157).
  Mössbauer effect (161).
  Complete list of elementary particles (170).
  Isotopic spin (174).
  Strangeness (179).
  G(ji)-parity (182).
  K mesons (184).
  Hyperons (188).
  Resonances (192).
  Table of mesons and meson resonances (197).
  Table of baryons and baryon resonances (203).
  On the classification of hadrons (208).
  Unitary symmetry. Gell-Main and Ne'eman model (211).
  Quarks (224).
  Formula for particle masses in a unitary multiplet (233).
  Hyperfragments (236).
  Relationships between units of measurement of certain quantities (243).

Publisher's abstract: Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences K.I. In a series of essays, Shchelkin popularly talks about the structure of atoms and atomic nuclei of matter and antimatter, about nuclear forces, and the structure of nucleons. The book gives an idea of ​​strong, electromagnetic and weak interactions, parity, its non-conservation, and vacuum polarization. Models of the nucleus, nuclear fission and fusion reactions are described. In the book you can find basic information about elementary particles. It also talks about the latest practical achievements of quantum physics - quantum amplifiers, radio emission of atomic hydrogen, the Mössbauer effect, etc.
Several essays are devoted to strange particles. The book is written in clear, understandable language and is intended for readers with secondary and higher education who do not have special physical and mathematical training, but are interested in the latest achievements in the physics of the atom, the atomic nucleus and elementary particles - the achievements of the physics of the microworld.
The first and second editions of the book were met with great interest and are now completely out of print.

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Biography

In 1924-1928. studied in Karasubazar. In 1928, Kirill Shchelkin entered the physics and technology department of the Crimean Pedagogical Institute, where he successfully completed his studies in 1932.

Kirill Ivanovich's scientific career began in Leningrad, at the newly organized Institute of Chemical Physics of the USSR Academy of Sciences, where he was invited immediately after graduating from the institute.

The young researcher quickly identified one of the mysterious problems of that time in the combustion of gases - spin detonation. Already in May 1934, he submitted an article to the Journal of Experimental and Theoretical Physics, “An Attempt to Calculate the Detonation Spin Frequency,” which attracted the attention of combustion specialists.

The works of this period formed the basis of his Ph.D. thesis, which Shchelkin successfully defended on December 19, 1938 at the age of 27.

Kirill Ivanovich planned to carry out extensive research on the combustion and detonation of gas mixtures and present them in the form of a doctoral dissertation by 1943, but the war prevented the implementation of these plans. In the very first days of the war, he signed up as a volunteer and went to the front. Shchelkin took part in fierce battles on the outskirts of Moscow, in the decisive battle for Moscow. In January 1942, by order of Deputy People's Commissar of Defense E.A. Shchadenko, he was recalled from the active army to continue scientific work at the Institute of Chemical Physics, which was evacuated to Kazan.

During this period of scientific activity, Kirill Ivanovich focused on the processes occurring in the combustion chamber. From the experience of previous research, he understood the important role of turbulent processes in increasing the intensity and efficiency of combustion. The introduction of these ideas significantly contributed to the development of domestic jet technology. In parallel with applied research, Kirill Ivanovich continued his scientific work, and on November 12, 1946, he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation on the topic “Fast combustion and spin detonation.” Based on the materials of his dissertation, in 1949 he published a monograph under the same title.

Soon after defending his doctoral dissertation, Kirill Ivanovich was invited to the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences, where its president I. Vavilov offered him the position of deputy director of the Institute of Physical Problems, but he refused this flattering offer, citing his desire to engage in science. However, this invitation turned out to be a turning point for K.I. Shchelkin: the former People’s Commissar of Ammunition, member of the Special Committee under the Council of Ministers of the USSR B.L. Vannikov, who was involved in organizing and speeding up work “on the use of intra-atomic energy”, including “ development and production of the atomic bomb." Two months after this meeting, Kirill Ivanovich was appointed to the newly created nuclear center.

Already in April 1947, K.I. Shchelkin took part in a meeting of the Special Committee, at which, among other things, the creation of a test site - the "Mountain Station" - was discussed.

A brilliant result of the efforts of not only the first Soviet nuclear weapons center, but also the entire young nuclear industry was the successful test of the first Soviet atomic bomb on August 29, 1949. This explosion ended the United States' nuclear monopoly. The work of scientists and engineers was highly appreciated by the government. Shchelkin was also on the list of those awarded the highest awards. Continuing the work he started with his characteristic dedication, he also made a significant contribution to the development and testing of the next nuclear charge, entirely based on domestic ideas. For this work in 1951 he received the second star of the Hero of Socialist Labor.

The intensity of work in KB-11 and in the nuclear industry as a whole was increasing: on August 12, 1953, the first thermonuclear bomb was tested in the Soviet Union (namely a bomb, that is, a charge ready for combat use, and not a thermonuclear “laboratory”), and on November 22 1955 - the first Soviet superbomb - a cascade thermonuclear charge. American hopes of increasing the nuclear lead turned out to be unfounded. For his contribution to the development and testing of the first thermonuclear charge in December 1953, Kirill Ivanovich Shchelkin was awarded the third star of the Hero of Socialist Labor.

During his time at KB-11, Kirill Ivanovich’s talent as a scientist and organizer fully manifested itself. He was distinguished by his depth of understanding of problems, clarity of goal setting, ability to work with people, large-scale thinking, and focus on the future. While still in Leningrad, he developed friendly relations with the scientific director of the Soviet nuclear project, I.V. Kurchatov. Igor Vasilyevich highly appreciated Shchelkin’s energy, knowledge, experience and business qualities. Kirill Ivanovich's authority was high among industry leaders and in scientific circles. Therefore, when the task of creating a second nuclear weapons center arose, K. I. Shchelkin was recommended for the position of its scientific director and chief designer.

The results were already evident in 1957, when the first thermonuclear charges developed by the new center were tested. These tests convincingly demonstrated the viability and potential of the newly created institute. By the way, the first thermonuclear charge adopted by the Soviet Army was developed and tested precisely by the Ural Nuclear Center in that first test session for it. For these successes, a group of specialists from the center, together with Kirill Ivanovich, were awarded the Lenin Prize.

Such hard work could not pass without leaving a mark on his health. The body, trained in young years, began to malfunction. The illnesses followed one after another, becoming more protracted and debilitating. In 1960, K.I. Shchelkin was forced to retire for health reasons.

Even during the most difficult years of work at KB-11 and NII-1011, Kirill Ivanovich found time for scientific research on combustion, which he continued with his colleagues at the Institute of Chemical Physics. His works, personal and co-authored, regularly appeared in scientific journals. After retiring, he did not stop, but, on the contrary, expanded his scientific research and range of scientific interests. The frequency of his publications has increased. Shchelkin's works received worldwide recognition, they were read and quoted. In 1963, the monograph “Gas Dynamics of Combustion” was published, which he prepared together with Y. K. Troshin. At the same time, he continued to work on a book on the physics of the atom, nucleus and subnuclear particles, “Physics of the Microworld.”

Kirill Ivanovich paid great attention to the popularization of science, publishing articles in many magazines and giving lectures. He took care of the scientific shift, organized the Department of Combustion at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, and himself lectured there. Paying tribute to his comrades in the atomic epic, K. I. Shchelkin in the mid-60s wrote an introductory article and edited the collection “Soviet Atomic Science and Technology,” dedicated to the 50th anniversary of Soviet power. He emphasizes that one of the main components of the success of the domestic Atomic Project lies in the collective feat of all its participants.

Activities

• Combustion and explosion specialist

Essays

Proceedings on combustion and detonation as applied to a nuclear explosion. Proposed the theory of spin detonation. The term “turbulent flame zone according to Shchelkin” is known in the scientific literature.

• Dissertation (topic - gas dynamics of combustion) for the degree of Candidate of Technical Sciences (defended in 1939)
• Doctoral dissertation on the topic "Fast combustion and spin detonation"
• Gas dynamics of combustion, M., 1963 (together with Ya. K. Troshin)
• His popular essays “Physics of the Microworld” went through several editions and received first prize at the All-Union competition of popular science books.

Achievements

• Doctor of Technical Sciences (1949)
• Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1953)
• Professor (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute)

Awards

• Hero of Socialist Labor (1949, 1951, 1954)
• Order of Lenin (4)
• Order of the Red Banner of Labor
• Order of the Red Star
• Lenin Prize laureate (1958)
• Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1949, 1951, 1954)

Images

Monuments

Miscellaneous

• His scientific ideas are still used today, in particular, in describing new classes of phenomena, such as thermonuclear combustion in modern systems or in the atmospheres of neutron stars during the development of X-ray flares.
• The city of Shchelkino in the Leninsky district of Crimea, founded in October 1978 as a settlement for construction workers of the Crimean Nuclear Power Plant, is named in honor of Shchelkin.
• Bronze bust of three times Hero of Socialist Labor K.I. Shchelkin was installed and inaugurated in his homeland - Tbilisi (Georgia) in 1982. Currently dismantled by the new Georgian authorities.
• Publication “Shchelkin Kirill Ivanovich (Metaksyan Kirakos Ovanesovich) from the book by Arutyunyan K.A., Pogosyan G.R. “The contribution of the Armenian people to the victory in the Great Patriotic War”, part of the photo was sent

The first scientific director and chief designer of the nuclear center of the Russian Federal Nuclear Center, for a wide range of citizens - Chelyabinsk-70 - Kirill Ivanovich Shchelkin was born in May 1911 in Tiflis. According to official documents, his father’s name was Ivan Efimovich Shchelkin, but his father’s real name was Hovhannes Yepremovich Metaksyan - the scientist’s father’s Armenian origin was obvious. The scientist’s mother is teacher Vera Alekseevna Shchelkina (Zhikulina).

Usually, when describing the merits of a scientist and various biographies, the Armenian roots of a famous and honored scientist are not mentioned. Merits, titles and regalia are indicated, and a scientist with Armenian roots has quite a few of them - three times Hero of Socialist Labor (1949, 1951, 1954), laureate of the Stalin (1949, 1951, 1953) and Lenin (1958) prizes, “secret” leader and organizer of the defense industry, one of the creators of atomic weapons in the USSR Kirakos Hovhannesovich Metaksyan. Despite the obviousness of his Armenian origin and the fact that the scientist knew and spoke Armenian perfectly, disputes about the nationality of Shchelkin-Metaksyan have continued for 20 years - since 1998 after the publication of the brochure “Pages of the History of the Nuclear Center”. It was there that the physicist’s Armenian origin was mentioned.

We also find confirmation of the Armenian origin of Kirill Shchelkin in the book by Grigor Martirosyan “Shchelkin Kirill Ivanovich. Metaksyan Kirakos Ovanesovich. Three times Hero, an Armenian who remained secret and is not known to the people.” For this literary work about the famous physicist, Grigor Martirosyan received special gratitude from the director of the Institute of Chemical Physics named after. N. N. Semenov RAS Alexander Berlin.

The biography of the scientist, on the one hand, is common and characteristic of that time, on the other hand, the facts of the biography emphasize how much this man managed to do over the years of his life. From 1924 to 1928, Shchelkin-Metaksyan studied in Karasubazar - now the city of Belogorsk in Crimea. Back in 1932, he successfully graduated from the Faculty of Physics and Technology of the Crimean State Pedagogical Institute. Just six years later, in 1938, he defended his dissertation on the topic “Experimental studies of the conditions for the occurrence of detonation in gas mixtures.”

Of course, like many other citizens of the USSR, during the Great Patriotic War Shchelkin-Metaksyan volunteered for the front. However, already in January he was sent to Kazan - he was needed for secret work in the laboratory of academician, nuclear physicist, the famous “father” of the Soviet atomic bomb, Igor Kurchatov.

The scientist was appointed to the position of chief designer and scientific director of the atomic bomb project in 1946. Then he founded the Arzamas-16 center in the Urals - it was there that the atomic bomb was assembled.

A significant event took place on August 29, 1949 at the Semipalatinsk test site: early in the morning at 4:17, the atomic bomb began to rise to the tower, initiating the charge into the plutonium sphere of the first Soviet atomic bomb (“Special/Stalin jet engine” RDS-1) was placed by Kirill Shchelkin. It was he who was the last to seal the entrance to the tower. At 6:48 in the morning, Shchelkin turned on the “Start” button and thereby turned on the automatic detonation - so at 7:00 the famous explosion of the first atomic bomb in the history of the USSR thundered.

Now we are just reading an article about this and perhaps we do not understand what responsibility was assigned to the scientist. Many years later, senior researcher at the test site, Major Engineer Sergei Davydov, recalled that the scientist himself was well aware of how responsible and dangerous this event was - Shchelkin continuously drank valerian throughout the test session.

After this first test, others continued - RDS-2 and RDS-3. The scientist’s activities did not go unnoticed - he received two medals of the Hero of Socialist Labor.

In 1957, the Chelyabinsk-70 nuclear center developed and then successfully tested a thermonuclear charge. It was this charge that was the first to be adopted into service in the Soviet Union.

Shchelkin was without a doubt an honored scientist and a wonderful person, however, he could not avoid persecution from the leadership, despite all his merits and achievements.

Everyone has their own destiny; for a scientist of Armenian origin, it is a “profession of “burning and explosion.” The incomparable colossal physical, nervous and moral stress for the whole 13 years - work on atomic and hydrogen weapons certainly took its toll - the scientist literally “burned out” at work.

Nevertheless, he chose a worthy path, which is not feasible for everyone - he refused to participate in the most famous and most scandalous explosions in the history of mankind. In the name of life on Earth, he was able to step on the throat of his profession - although he could have received world fame and numerous gifts. He “became the most “unknown” of the pioneers of the Atomic Project,” as it is written about him in the book by Shchelkin’s son Felix “Apostles of the Atomic Age. Memories, reflections."

Anna Limonyan

(05/17/1911, Tiflis - 11/8/1968, Moscow; buried at Novodevichy Cemetery), physicist, specialist in the field of combustion and detonation as applied to nuclear explosions, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences (1946), professor, member correspondent of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1953), laureate of the Lenin Prize (1958), three times Stalin Prize, 1st degree. (1949, 1951, 1953), three times Hero of Socialist Labor (1949, 1951, 1954). Participant of the Great Patriotic War. Graduated from the Crimean Pedagogical Institute in Simferopol (1932).

From 1932 to 1941 he worked at the Institute of Chemical Physics (ICP) of the USSR Academy of Sciences (Leningrad). In 1941 he volunteered to go to the front. In January 1942 he was recalled from the active army to continue scientific work at the Institute of Chemical Physics, which was evacuated to Kazan. From 1944 he headed the laboratory of turbulent combustion, from 1947 - deputy, and from 1948 - first deputy scientific director and chief designer of KB-11 (Arzamas-16). In 1955-1960, chief designer and scientific director of the Nuclear Center in Chelyabinsk-60, now RFNC - All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Technical Physics, Snezhinsk, Chelyabinsk region. The first studies are devoted to preventing methane explosions in coal mines and suppressing detonation of the fuel mixture in the working cylinders of internal combustion engines. Founder of the theory of spin detonation: proposed a feedback mechanism through turbulence to accelerate the flame, leading to the transition of combustion to detonation in pipes; studied the interaction of turbulence with flame, gave a formula for the speed of a turbulent flame, revealed the role of turbulence in the occurrence of detonation and showed the dependence of speed on the degree of roughness of the walls. The latter forced us to reconsider the classical theory of detonation. He contributed to the theory of combustion by studying the influence of turbulence on the modes of flame propagation in channels using artificially introduced roughness. He also studied the structure of the detonation wave, showing that spin detonation is the limiting case of a pulsating direct detonation wave associated with the instability of the front; substantiated the presence of such instability and gave an approximate criterion for its occurrence. Participated in the development of jet engines, studying processes in the combustion chamber. He supervised design work, experimental research, testing of blocks and full-scale mock-ups of the first Soviet nuclear charge. He took a direct part in the experimental testing of explosive systems and automation devices for domestic nuclear and thermonuclear weapons. Together with Khariton, he was responsible for the preparation and testing of the first nuclear bomb at the Semipalatinsk test site. Completing the installation, he performed the last technological operation before its explosion - he lowered the “Dukhov ball” (neutron initiator) under the plutonium plug. In 1951 he tested a more advanced nuclear charge. In 1953 - testing of the first domestic thermonuclear charge. He was involved in the selection of personnel, the organization of the scientific and technological base, the formation of scientific and technical policy, and production programs. The first thermonuclear charge adopted by the Soviet Army was developed by the Center and tested in its first test session (1957). Since 1960 - in Moscow, he was engaged in fundamental research, presenting the work of the nuclear industry, and popularizing the latest achievements of physics. Professor at MIPT, since 1961 - head of the combustion department. Honorary citizen of the city of Snezhinsk (1967). One of the city streets is named after him.
Awarded: Orders of Lenin (1949, 1956), Red Banner of Labor (1953), Red Star (1945) and medals, including “For the Defense of Moscow”.

Kirill Ivanovich Shchelkin(May 4, 1911, Tiflis, - November 8, 1968, Moscow) - first scientific director and chief designer of the Chelyabinsk-70 nuclear center (Snezhinsk, since 1992 RFNC-VNIITF - Russian Federal Nuclear Center - All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Technical Physics), three times Hero of Socialist Labor.

Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences (since October 23, 1953, Department of Physical and Mathematical Sciences). A specialist in the field of combustion and detonation and the role of turbulence in these processes (it was he who formulated the theory of spin detonation), the term “turbulent flame zone according to Shchelkin” is known in the scientific literature.

Biography

Shchelkin Kirill Ivanovich was born on May 17, 1911 in Tbilisi. Russian. Father - land surveyor Ivan Efimovich Shchelkin, a native of the Smolensk province of the city of Krasny. Mother - Vera Alekseevna Shchelkina (maiden name Zhikulina), a native of the Kursk province, a teacher. There was a version about the Armenian origin of the scientist, since he had several Armenian friends in Crimea and he understood the Armenian language. This was due to the work of Ivan Efimovich in Tbilisi among the Armenians. At the request of the Rossiyskaya Gazeta, supported by the Department of Information Policy of the Smolensk Regional Administration, employees of the State Archives of the Smolensk Region (GASO) conducted an operational search and found evidence that Kirill Shchelkin’s paternal roots, as he himself claimed in all his autobiographical documents, go to the serfs of the Krasninsky district of the Smolensk province. GASO director Nina Emelyanova reported that the “needle in a haystack” we were looking for was found in the funds of the Spiritual Consistory, where metric books are kept. It was in such a book of the Assumption Church in the city of Krasny, Smolensk province for 1881 that entry No. 9 was discovered about the birth on February 24 and the baptism on February 26 of the baby Ivan. His father is a Krasny townsman Efim Fedorovich Shchelkin, his mother is Anastasia Trofimovna. Which confirms Russian ethnic roots. And he refutes the arguments about the Armenian origin of the scientist.

In 1924-1928 he studied in Karasubazar, where there is a memorial in his honor. In 1932 he graduated from the Faculty of Physics and Technology of the Crimean State Pedagogical Institute. He defended his dissertation (topic - gas dynamics of combustion) for the degree of Candidate of Technical Sciences in 1938, his doctorate in 1945 (opponents were future academicians - the founder of the theory of air-jet engines B. S. Stechkin, the outstanding theoretical physicist L. D. Landau and the largest aerodynamicist S. A. Khristianovich), became a professor of physical and mathematical sciences in 1947.

It was Shchelkin who signed for the “receipt” of the first Soviet atomic explosive device RDS-1 from the assembly shop. Then they made fun of him: where did you put the bomb you signed for? The landfill documents still state that K.I. Shchelkin is responsible for the “product” (followed by the number and code). It was he who, on August 29, 1949, at the Semipalatinsk test site, placed the initiating charge into the plutonium sphere of the first Soviet atomic explosive device RDS-1 (This name comes from a government decree where the atomic bomb was encrypted as a “special jet engine,” abbreviated RDS. The designation RDS- 1 came into widespread use after the testing of the first atomic bomb and was deciphered in different ways: “Stalin’s jet engine”, “Russia makes it itself”, etc.; the “American version” of the design was used). It was he who came out last and sealed the entrance to the tower with RDS-1. It was he who pressed the “Start” button.

This was followed by RDS-2 and RDS-3. Based on the results of testing the first Soviet nuclear device, a group of scientists, designers and technologists were awarded the titles of Hero of Socialist Labor (I.V. Kurchatov, V.I. Alferov, N.L. Dukhov, Ya.B. Zeldovich, P.M. Zernov, Yu. B. Khariton, G. N. Flerov, K. I. Shchelkin) and a laureate of the Stalin Prize of the first degree, plus dachas and cars for each, as well as the right to educate children at the expense of the state in any educational institutions of the USSR. Nuclear veterans joked (the joke is quite in the style of life) that when submitting for awards, they proceeded from a simple principle: those who, in case of failure, were destined to be shot, were awarded the title of Hero if successful; those doomed in case of failure to maximum imprisonment in case of a successful outcome are given the Order of Lenin, and so on downwards.

In total, in October 1949, 176 scientists and engineers were awarded Stalin Prizes, and in December 1951, after the second successful test on September 24, 1951 (of a uranium charge), another 390 participants in the atomic project were awarded. In 1954, K. I. Shchelkin received the Hero for the third time together with I. V. Kurchatov, Yu. B. Khariton, B. L. Vannikov and N. L. Dukhov for the creation of a series of Soviet atomic charges.

In 1960, Shchelkin moved to Moscow, worked as a professor, head of the combustion department at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, and gave lectures to students and popular lectures to a wide audience. His popular essays “Physics of the Microworld” went through several editions and received first prize at the All-Union competition of popular science books.

Family

• The son, Felix, is also a nuclear physicist and was involved in the development of nuclear weapons.
• Daughter - Anna, biophysicist.

Awards

• Three times Hero of Socialist Labor (1949, 1951, 1954).
• Laureate of the Lenin Prize (1958) and the Stalin Prize (1949, 1951, 1954).
• He was awarded four Orders of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and the Red Star, as well as medals.

Memory

• The city of Shchelkino in the Leninsky district of Crimea, founded in October 1978 as a settlement for construction workers of the Crimean Nuclear Power Plant and an avenue in the city of Snezhinsk, is named in honor of Shchelkin. In Snezhinsk, two memorial plaques were also installed at the addresses: Shchelkina Ave., 17/42 and st. Lenina, 12.
• On May 24, 2011, the first monument in Russia to K. I. Shchelkin, sculptor K. A. Gilev, was unveiled in Snezhinsk.
• In 2011, a Russian postage stamp dedicated to Shchelkin was issued.
• City school No. 1 of Belogorsk (Karasubazar) in Crimea is named after K. I. Shchelkin.