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Noah Hershkowitz

Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz rather than just read about it. In short: Noah Hershkowitz (August 16, 1941 – November 13, 2020) was an American experimental plasma physicist. He was known for his pioneering research on the understanding of plasma sheaths, solitons and double layers in plasmas, as well as the development of the emissive probe which measures the plasma potential (i.e. the electric potential within a plasma sheath).

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Noah Hershkowitz (August 16, 1941 – November 13, 2020) was an American experimental plasma physicist. He was known for his pioneering research on the understanding of plasma sheaths, solitons and double layers in plasmas, as well as the development of the emissive probe which measures the plasma potential (i.e. the electric potential within a plasma sheath). In 2004, Hershkowitz was co-awarded the 2004 James Clerk Maxwell Prize for Plasma Physics for his contributions to the field of low-temperature plasmas. He was also awarded the 2015 IEEE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Award for his research and education of basic and applied plasma science.

Early life and career Hershkowitz obtained a bachelor's degree from Union College in 1962 and a Ph.D. in physics from Johns Hopkins University in 1966. Upon graduation, Hershkowitz remained at the university to become an instructor in physics until 1967, where he was employed as assistant professor at the University of Iowa until 1980. During this time between 1974 and 1975, he was a visiting professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. Between 1980 and 1981, he was a visiting professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder. In 1981, he became a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and was the Irving Langmuir Professor of Engineering Physics. In 1992, Hershkowitz founded the journal Plasma Sources Science and Technology as the editor-in-chief.

Scientific contributions Hershkowitz' work on low temperature plasmas included radio frequency wave heating, sheath physics, potential profiles, diagnostic probes and the industrial applications of plasmas. His work also has applications in magnetic confinement fusion (e.g. tokamaks, magnetic mirrors).

Honors and awards Hershkowitz has been a fellow of the American Physical Society and the IEEE since 1981. In 2004, Hershkowitz was jointly awarded the James Clerk Maxwell Prize for Plasma Physics with Valery Godyak for his research on low-temperature plasmas. That same year he received the Plasma Prize of the American Vacuum Society. In 2015, he received the IEEE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Award for "innovative research and inspiring education in basic and applied plasma science".

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Noah Hershkowitz

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz

In research
Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz 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
Noah Hershkowitz is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1941 births, 2020 deaths, 20th-century American physicists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Noah Hershkowitz 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.
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How to study Noah Hershkowitz in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Noah Hershkowitz in simple terms?

Noah Hershkowitz (August 16, 1941 – November 13, 2020) was an American experimental plasma physicist. He was known for his pioneering research on the understanding of plasma sheaths, solitons and double layers in plasmas, as well as the development of the emissive probe which measures the plasma po…

Why does Noah Hershkowitz 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 Noah Hershkowitz?

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 Noah Hershkowitz.

Tags

  • 1941 births
  • 2020 deaths
  • 20th-century American physicists
  • 21st-century American physicists
  • American plasma physicists
  • Fellows of the American Physical Society
  • Fellows of the IEEE
  • Johns Hopkins University alumni
  • Scientists from New York City
  • Union College (New York) alumni
  • University of California, Los Angeles faculty
  • University of Iowa faculty

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