1. Stefan Meyer and the age of the sun
SMI – STEFAN MEYER INSTITUTE
Stefan Meyer and the age of the sun
J. Marton
Stefan Meyer Institute (SMI)
Austrian Academy of Sciences Vienna
Boltzmanngasse 3
1090 Vienna
OePG-SPG Tagung 2017
WWW:OEAW.AC.AT/SMI

2. Why the „age of the sun“
connected to Stefan Meyer is interesting?
In the literature the dating method with uranium-lead of the age of the earth (4.55 x109 yrs) is traced back to Fritz Houtermans (1953) and Clair C. Patterson (1955).
Less known is a publication in MIR by Stefan Meyer in 1937 finding an age of the sun 4.6 x 109 yrs.

3. Stefan Meyer and his legacy
Radiuminstitut founded
1910
First Director: Stefan Meyer
1st institute of Austrian Academy
Pioneer in radioactivity research
2 nobel laureates (V. Hess, G. Hevesy)
1987 Renamed "Institute for Medium Energy Physics“
2004: Renamed to Stefan Meyer Institute (SMI)

4. Pioneer of radioactivity research
Many studies and publications related to Stefan Meyer exist, e.g.
Wolfgang Reiter: Stefan Meyer: Pioneer in Radioactivity. In: Physics in Perspective. Bd. 3(1), 106–127
Maria Rentetsi, Trafficking materials and Gendered Experimental Practices, e.org/rentetzi/
Stefan Sienell, Christine Ottner: Das Archiv des Instituts für Radiumforschung. In: Anzeiger der math.- nat. Klasse der ÖAW. II 140, 2004, S , bes. S. 23–33.
Silke Fengler, Carola Sachse, Kernforschung in Österreich: Wandlungen eines interdisziplinären Forschungsfeldes 1900–1978. Wien: Böhlau Verlag Wien, 2012.
Berta Karlik, Erich Schmid: Franz Serafin Exner und sein Kreis. Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien 1982.
Festschrift Inst. f. Radiumforschung, Sitzungsberichte ÖAW, 159. Band (1950).
The legacy of Stefan Meyer is not only the Institute for Radium Research and its well-known success but has outreach to present and future times.
Legacy for our institute SMI (and Institute for Isotope Research) which together with the Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Communication is located at the Radium Institute.

5. Curriculum Vitae Stefan Meyer
Born April 27th, 1872, Vienna, Dr. Gotthelf Karl
Meyer and his wife Clara Regine Goldschmidt
1892 PhD (Dr. phil.), Physics, University Vienna
Assistant of Ludwig Boltzmann
1899 Docent (“Privatdozent”) at University Vienna
Docent at Vienna Conservatorium (acoustics)
1908 a.o. Prof.
1910 head of Institut f. Radiumforschung
1913 “Lieben” Prize (Radioaktivität)
1916 “Radioaktivität” with Egon Schweidler
1920 o. Prof. (full Professor of Physics)
1932 Member Academy of Sciences Vienna
1937 President Int, Radium Standard Commission
1938 (Forced) retirement
Honarary Professor
1947 Retirement
Deceased December 29, 1949 in Bad Ischl
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

6. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

7. First Research Centers and nobel laureates
Paris
M. Curie
1903(Physik),
1911 (Chemie)
Wien
Cambridge
Victor F. Hess
1936 (Physik)
E. Rutherford
1908 (Chemie)
also Kaiser Wilhelm Institut, Berlin
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

8. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
About 60 female researchers
From Diploma Thesis, K. Zelger, Univ. Vienna,
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

9. St. Meyer as Nobel Laureate Nominator
>10 nominees got the
Nobel Prize
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

10. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
Radium Standard
Certificate:
Stefan Meyer
Marie Curie
Ernest Rutherford
Hönigschmid Standards
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

11. Radiuminstitut: Hot Topics
Definition of the Radium Standard (Hönigschmid) – Standard (Etalon)
Properties of Radium
Application of the new radioactivity
Radio-Chemistry
In Physics: new source of particles and gamma rays
Development of particle detectors – e.g. M. Blau nuclear emulsion
Medicine e.g. Radon
Age determination (Dating with long-lived isotopes, decay rate/half life has to be known)
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

12. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
From „Radioaktivität“ by Meyer/Schweidler
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

13. St. M.: What means “age“ of the sun?
„Age“ assumes the sun epoche which corresponds to the present sun behavior.
Age of this epoche is larger than the time since the separation of the earth from the sun.
The „age“ is determined from material found on earth
Weight of mixed lead is the same all over earth. Lead to large extent as a donation of the sun.
One ssumes that at the time of separation the distribution of lead to uranium of earth and sun is the same.
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

14. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
Expectations about the age of the sun
Old expectations of astronomers
1012 yr
P.A.M Dirac (1937)
2 x 109 yr
W. Nernst (1921)
3 x 109 yr
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

15. Dating with uranium Decay series starting with uranium isotopes having
lead isotopes as final product
Uranium-Radium serie:
238U   206Pb half life 4.5x109 yr
Uranium-Actinium serie:
235U   207Pb half life 0.704x109 yr

16. One has to know the ratios of the uranium and
Pb-Pb Dating Method
Pb-Pb dating  powerful method for chronology of
the first 10Myr of solar system
2 long-lived Uranium isotopes decaying into
Pb isotopes
One has to know the ratios of the uranium and
lead isotopes and the decay rates. At the time of Stefan Meyer‘s paper the decay
rate of 235U (called Actinium-uranium) was not known.

17. Stefan Meyer 1937 This paper was submitted in April 1937.
Stefan Meyer stepped back („voluntary“, i.e. forced) as Director and Member of the Academy in 1938.

18. What happened around 1937? Eminent nuclear scientists (and fiends)
of Stefan Meyer passed away
1934 Marie Curie (1867 – 1934)
1937 Ernest Rutherford (1871 – 1937)
1937 Stefan Meyer became President of the
Int. Radium Standard Commission as successor
after E. Rutherford
1936 Victor Hess and Anderson got the nobel prize in physics
1938 March: „Anschluss“ Austria to Germany
Stefan Meyer dismissed from Univ. Vienna
Withdrawal from Academy

19. The paper on the age of
the sun was published
in „Mitteilungen des
Instituts für Radiumforschung“.
It can be seen as „hidden“
since written in german in
a not wide-spread journal.
Nevertheless it is cited in
Nature in 1943 (F.F. Kocy)

20. Mass Spectroscopy – impact
Francis William Aston
1877 – 1945
First Mass Spectrometry 1919
Nobel Prize (Chemistry) 1922
F.W. Aston, Proc.
Roy. Soc. London 140 (1933) 535

21. Half-life of AcU (235U) E. Rutherford 4.2 x 108 a 1929 A. Holmes
1930
A.F. Kovarik
2.7 x 108 a
A. v. Grosse
4 x 108 a
1934
F. Western and A.E. Ruark
4.45 x 108 a

23. Rose and Stranathan
F.W. Aston, Cavendish Laboratories, Cambridge

25. Decay rate 235U vs. AcU/U ratio
for different Pb/U scenarios

26. Conclusion Age of the sun (4.6±0.4) 109 yrs 80 year later
Bonanno, H.-E. Fröhlich,
arXiv: [astro-ph.SR] (July 2015)
Bonanno, Fröhlich (2015) (4.587±0.007) 109 yrs

27. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
Stefan Meyer’s Work in Bad Ischl
after the (compulsory) retirement
… “für Musikanten und Dilettanten”
“für Maler, Konstrukteure, Photographen und Bilderfreunde”
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

28. J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve
Thank you for
your attention
J. Marton OePG/SPG, Geneve

29. Stefan Meyer - Director of the Radiuminstitut der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien – published 1937 a paper (1) on the “age” of the sun. The “age” of the sun was given as 4.6 (± 0.4) x 109 years and the half-period of actin-uranium was found to be 7.0 (± 0.5) x 108 years.
1938 soon after this publication Stefan Meyer had to retire and quit the Membership of the Academy when the national socialists took over.
The outcome of this research was published by F.F. Koczy in 1943 in Nature (2) – thus at a time Stefan Meyer stayed in Bad Ischl escaping from the national socialist regime. This research topic will be discussed.

30. Stefan Meyer Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences
1090 Vienna, Boltzmanngasse 3
phone (secretary) (+43 1) fax (+43 1)

31. Dacay rate 235U vs. AcU/U ratio for different Pb/U scanarios
λ1=1.50x10-10

32. AcU/U ratio vs. Pb/U ratio

33. Th/U ratio vs. Pb/U ratio