physics

R. A. Stradling

R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling rather than just read about it. In short: Richard Anthony "Tony" Stradling (1937 – 26 November 2002), was an English semiconductor physicist, latterly professor of physics at Imperial College London. Biography Tony Stradling was born in Solihull, Warwickshire.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Richard Anthony "Tony" Stradling (1937 – 26 November 2002), was an English semiconductor physicist, latterly professor of physics at Imperial College London.

Biography Tony Stradling was born in Solihull, Warwickshire. He received his early education at Solihull School. He took a First in physics from Brasenose College, Oxford, in 1955, followed by his DPhil studies in the Clarendon Laboratory, Oxford. He was appointed University Lecturer at Oxford and Fellow of Christ Church in 1968. In 1978 he took up the Chair of Natural Philosophy at St Andrews University. He remained in Scotland until 1984, when he moved back to England as Professor of Physics at Imperial College. He held this position until his retirement shortly before his death. His early work was on the cyclotron resonance of semiconductors moving to magnetophonon resonance. He and his team of students used this effect to investigate a wide range of phenomena in the II-VI, III-V and elemental semiconductors. He pioneered the use of infra-red gas lasers combined with high magnetic fields to carry out cyclotron resonance and impurity spectroscopy measurements. Hydrostatic pressure was another tool for investigating band structure and impurity states in semiconductors that he exploited, particularly at St Andrews. He also investigated the spin and giant magnetoresistance properties of the narrow gap III-V compounds. One of the legacies of Stradling’s research is his measurement of the effective masses and band parameters of many semiconductor materials, which continue to remain useful for semiconductor technologists. For example, his team's measurements of the effective masses of carriers in the III-V compounds are used to design lasers and fast transistors. These devices are used in electronics, optoelectronics and data storage. Tony’s appointment to a Chair of Physics at Imperial College London rapidly established Imperial as a leading international centre in semiconductor physics. His international renown was enhanced by his editorship of the journal Semiconductor Science and Technology, which he was instrumental in founding. Tony Stradling lived in Oxford and commuted to London daily. He died on 26 November 2002.

Honours He was awarded the Institute of Physics C V Boys Prize in 1975. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1981.

References https://web.archive.org/web/20070204001807/http://www.bnc.ox.ac.uk/bnc_society/BoundBrazenose.pdf

External links Semiconductor Science and Technology journal

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with R. A. Stradling

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling

In research: R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling 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: R. A. Stradling is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1937 births, 2002 deaths, Academics of Imperial College London, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is R. A. Stradling in simple terms?

Richard Anthony "Tony" Stradling (1937 – 26 November 2002), was an English semiconductor physicist, latterly professor of physics at Imperial College London. Biography Tony Stradling was born in Solihull, Warwickshire.

Why does R. A. Stradling 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 R. A. Stradling?

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 R. A. Stradling.