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Eugene Paul Wigner Papers
Notifications
Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
A Hungarian-born physicist, Wigner worked in the early 1930s as a professor at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin, where he studied the quantum mechanical interpretation of atomic spectra which resulted in the publication of his book Gruppentheorie und Ihre Anwendung auf die Quantenmechanik Der Atomspektren (1931), later translated and published as Group Theory (1951), now a classic in its field. He moved to the United States, where he became professor of mathematical physics at Princeton University from 1933 to1937 and from 1937 to 1938 at the University of Wisconsin; he then returned to Princeton, where he worked until 1971, becoming professor emeritus. Prior to World War II, Wigner, along with Leo Szilard and Albert Einstein, was instrumental in getting the United States government to investigate the use of atomic energy for military purposes. During the War, he was on the staff of the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago (the Manhattan Project) researching ways to produce an atomic bomb, and he helped design the nuclear reactor at Hanford, Wash., where plutonium was produced. He was a member of the general advisory committee for the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (1952-1957, 1959-1964) and director of the Civil Defense Research Project at Oak Ridge, Tenn. (1964-1965), reflecting his interests in civil defense and national security. He received the Enrico Fermi Award (1958) and the Max Planck Medal (1961), and in 1963 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
The collection consists of the papers of Wigner, including correspondence, subject files, writings, and offprints reflecting his long career in physics. While some of the material concerns his work in the early 1930s as a professor at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin, the bulk of the papers relate to the period after Wigner moved to the United States. There is correspondence with other physicists and scientsts, such as John von Neumann, Pascual Jordan, Werner Heisenberg, Leo Szilard, Glenn T. Seaborg, Frederick Seitz, and Alvin M. Weinberg, as well as correspondence relating to his receipt of the Enrico Fermi Award, the Max Planck Medal, and the Nobel Prize for Physics. Additionally, there are 15 cassettes of taped interviews with Wigner discussing his entire life, conducted by Andrew Szanton from 1988 to 1989. Most of the papers and correspondence are in English; however, there is some material in German or Hungarian.
In addition, there are two sets of typewritten lectures on "Solid State" delivered at Princeton University. The first (138 pp.), dating from the 1930s, contains autograph notes by Frederick Seitz. The second set of lectures (181 pp.) is titled "Theory of Solid State" and was delivered at Princeton University between 1948 and 1949.
Parts of this collection were donated by Eileen Hamilton Wigner (1993, 1994), the American Institute of Physics (1994), Andrew Szantos (1994), Arthur Wightman (1999, 2003), Andrew Lenard (2001), and Jagdish Mehra (2002). A number of photographs of Eugene Wigner were transferred from the University Archives in 2005. Additional material was received from the Department of Physics in 2011.
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
No appraisal information is available.
Organization
- U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
- United States. Office of Scientific Research and Development. Metallurgical Laboratory
- Hanford Nuclear Reservation
- Manhattan Project U.S.
- Oak Ridge national laboratory
- Princeton University
Subject
- Atomic bomb -- United States -- 20th century
- Atomic theory
- Civil defense -- United States -- 20th century
- Group theory
- Mathematical physics
- Nobel prizes
- Nuclear energy -- United States -- 20th century
- Nuclear physics -- United States -- 20th century
- Nuclear reactors -- United States -- Design and construction -- 20th century
- Physics -- Study and teaching -- New Jersey -- Princeton. -- 20th century
- Physics -- United States -- 20th century
- Quantum theory
- Solid-state physics
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Science
Occupation
- Publisher
- Manuscripts Division
- Finding Aid Date
- 2002
- Access Restrictions
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Collection is open for research use.
- Use Restrictions
-
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
Collection Inventory
Consists of the writings of Eugene Paul Wigner, including his scientific papers, book drafts, articles and reviews, lectures, addresses, and journals.
This series is arranged into five subseries: Scientific Papers, Book Drafts, Articles and Reviews, Lectures and Addresses, and Journal.
Physical Description18 boxes
Consists of drafts and offprints for the scientific papers of Eugene Paul Wigner. Drafts are arranged in alphabetical order while offprints are arranged by year.
Arranged by genre of material.
Physical Description5 boxes
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Consists of drafts and correspondence for the books Group Theory, Handbook of Physics, Solid Bodies, and Theory of the Solid State, as well as some untitled work.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description2 boxes
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Consists of articles and reviews, as well as related correspondence, arranged in chronological order.
Arranged chronologically.
Physical Description2 boxes
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Consists of lectures (related to Group Theory, Collision Theory, Quantum Mechanics, Kinetic Theory of Gases, Theory of the Solid State, and Theory of Relativity), lecture notes, and addresses.
Arranged by genre of material.
Physical Description9 boxes
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Consists of a journal for the year 1952.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description1 box
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Consists of correspondence/subject files for Karoly Akos, American Institute of Physics, Argonne National Laboratory, Civil Defense, Committee of Mathematical Physics, the Fermi Award, Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, Monsanto Chemical Company, National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Science Foundation (NSF), and the President's Science Advisory Committee, as well as others.
Arranged alphabetically by subject of file.
Physical Description75 boxes
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(Correspondence and printed matter opposing the Conferences and Sun Myung Moon.)
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(See J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Prize)
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(Transcripts in English of 24 letters, 1929-1939 by Wigner, with published letters in Hungarian (not printed in the Collected Works) [AM 1999-53])
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1 boxcard file
Consists of papers and materials related to the American Institute of Physics, including biographies, chronologies, oral history interviews, publications, correspondence, and materials related specifically to Eugene Paul Wigner.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description4 boxes
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Consists of scrapbook materials arranged by year.
Arranged chronologically.
Physical Description2 boxes
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Consists of photographs (including portraits of Eugene Paul Wigner) and slides.
This series is arranged into two subseries: Photographs, and Slides.
Physical Description2 boxes
Consists of photographs, primarily portraits of Eugene Paul Wigner.
Arranged by subject of material.
Physical Description1 box
1 box
1 box
Consists of miscellaneous slides.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description1 box
1 box
Consists of interview tapes of Andrew Szanton and Eugene Paul Wigner.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description1 box
1 box
Consists of agreements, certificates, awards, passports, United States Selective Service Classification slips, and family materials.
Arranged by genre of material.
Physical Description1 box
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Consists of the papers of Amelia Frank, Eugene Paul Wigner first wife. Included are notebooks and offprints.
Arranged by genre of material.
Physical Description2 boxes
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1 folder
Consists of the papers of others, including Wasim Ahmad, W. Guttinger, and Filippo Salviati, as well as others.
Arranged alphabetically by author.
Physical Description6 boxes
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Consists primarily of clippings related to U.S. foreign policies, the USSR, Vietnam and Latin America.
Arranged by genre of material.
Physical Description5 boxes
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1 folder
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(Offprints, enciclopedia del 900, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, newsletters, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, the Princeton Alumni Weekly, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, programs, the Princeton Alumni Weekly, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, programs, the Princeton Alumni Weekly, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, programs, etc.)
Physical Description4 folders
(Offprints, Xeroxed articles, reports, newsletters, etc.)
Physical Description1 folder
1 box
Consists of a photograph of 1969-1970 Princeton physics faculty (?), including Wigner.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Physical Description1 box
1 box
Consists of more articles and scientific papers by Eugene Paul Wigner, several photographs, works about Eugene Paul Wigner, honors, invitations, speeches, and biographical material.
Arranged by accession date.
Physical Description4 boxes
3 boxes
1 box
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(Annotated list, photocopy, 48 pp. [Wightman's copy]; an earlier version, 41 pp., and a supplementary list (1989-90), prepared by Wigner and Wightman)
Physical Description1 folder
(See also: box 24, folder 9)
Physical Description1 folder
1 folder
TMs copy (138 pp.) of a lecture series delivered at Princeton University, with autograph notes by Frederick Seitz. AM 1993-35. [See also: box 24, folder 9]
Physical Description1 folder
TMs copy (181 pp.) of a lecture series delivered at Princeton University. AM 1993-35. [See also: box 24, folder 9]
Physical Description2 folders
2 boxes
1 folder
1 folder
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1 folder
4 folders
1 folder