ArticleslgStudy

physics

Isaac Abella

Isaac Abella is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Isaac Abella rather than just read about it. In short: Isaac David Abella (June 20, 1934 – October 23, 2016) was a Canadian-American physicist, cousin of Irving Abella, and a professor at the University of Chicago. He specialized in laser physics, quantum optics, and spectroscopy.

Key takeaways

  • Isaac Abella belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Isaac Abella to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Isaac Abella from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Isaac David Abella (June 20, 1934 – October 23, 2016) was a Canadian-American physicist, cousin of Irving Abella, and a professor at the University of Chicago. He specialized in laser physics, quantum optics, and spectroscopy.

Early life and education Isaac Abella was born on June 20, 1934, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree (1957) from the University of Toronto, Master of Arts (1959) degree, and Ph.D. (1963) in Physics from Columbia University in New York and studied under Charles H. Townes. Abella was involved in early research of laser development. Notably, his thesis under Townes was among the earliest works on two-photon absorption.

Career Abella was known for his work with laser coherent transients, employing photon echo techniques to probe metastable excited states in rare gas mixtures such as helium, neon, and argon. These states were produced in a weakly ionized RF plasma discharge. Nitrogen-pumped dye lasers were then used to generate the coherent superposition states. In 1969, he received the Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching from the University of Chicago. Abella was also known for his work in spectroscopy of rare-earth laser materials. Specifically, samples of YLF and YAG crystals doped with erbium, thulium, and holmium studied using selective laser excitation in the region of 780 nm, the erbium bands. He studied the energy transfer process: Er to Tm, to Ho, which concentrates energy emission at 2.085 μm at room temperature and in liquid nitrogen, a process that is a radiationless, near-resonant transfer of energy between sites that depends on the relative concentrations of the rare-earth ions. Accordingly, his experimental interests included measuring decay rates, excited state absorption, branching ratios and detailed theories of these processes.

Personal life and death Isaac Abella died on October 23, 2016, in Chicago, Illinois, at the age of 82. He was married to Mary Ann Abella, Professor of Art, Chicago State University. He had two children: a son, Benjamin, and daughter, Sarah.

Articles ABELLA, I. D.; TOWNES, C. H. (1961). "Mode Characteristics and Coherence in Optical Ruby Masers". Nature. 192 (4806). Springer Science and Business Media LLC: 957–959. Bibcode:1961Natur.192..957A. doi:10.1038/192957b0. ISSN 0028-0836. S2CID 4283726. Kurnit, N. A.; Abella, I. D.; Hartmann, S. R. (1964-11-09). "Observation of a Photon Echo". Physical Review Letters. 13 (19). American Physical Society (APS): 567–568. Bibcode:1964PhRvL..13..567K. doi:10.1103/physrevlett.13.567. ISSN 0031-9007. Abella, I. D.; Kurnit, N. A.; Hartmann, S. R. (1966-01-07). "Photon Echoes". Physical Review. 141 (1). American Physical Society (APS): 391–406. Bibcode:1966PhRv..141..391A. doi:10.1103/physrev.141.391. ISSN 0031-899X. A. E, Siegman, Lasers, University Science Press, Sausalito CA, 1986 Charles Townes. "How the Laser Happened", Oxford University Press, 1999 J. Hecht, "The Race to Make the First Laser", Oxford University Press, 2005

References

External links Oral history for Isaac Abella (22 October 1985), American Institute of Physics

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Isaac Abella

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Isaac Abella claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Isaac Abella before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Isaac Abella ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Isaac Abella

In research
Isaac Abella appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Isaac Abella in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Isaac Abella is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1934 births, 2016 deaths, 20th-century Canadian physicists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Isaac Abella outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Isaac Abella” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Isaac Abella in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Isaac Abella means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Isaac Abella out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Isaac Abella in simple terms?

Isaac David Abella (June 20, 1934 – October 23, 2016) was a Canadian-American physicist, cousin of Irving Abella, and a professor at the University of Chicago. He specialized in laser physics, quantum optics, and spectroscopy.

Why does Isaac Abella matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Isaac Abella?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Isaac Abella.

Tags

  • 1934 births
  • 2016 deaths
  • 20th-century Canadian physicists
  • 21st-century Canadian physicists
  • Canadian expatriate academics in the United States
  • Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni
  • Jewish American physicists
  • Jewish Canadian physicists
  • Laser researchers
  • Rare earth scientists
  • Scientists from Toronto
  • University of Chicago faculty

Keep exploring