physics

William J. Nellis

William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis rather than just read about it. In short: William J. Nellis is an American physicist.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

William J. Nellis is an American physicist. He is an associate of the Physics Department of Harvard University. His work has focused on ultra-condensed matter at extreme pressures, densities and temperatures achieved by fast dynamic compression. He is the recipient of the Bridgman Award of AIRAPT, the Duvall Award of APS and is a fellow of the APS Division of Condensed Matter Physics.

Early life and education Nellis received his B.S. degree in Physics from Loyola University of Chicago, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, in 1963 and his Ph.D. degree in Physics from Iowa State University in 1968.

Career and work From 1970 to 1973, Nellis was assistant professor of Physics at Monmouth College (ILL). In 1973, he left Monmouth to join Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LNLL). There he made the first experimental observation of a metallic phase of dense hydrogen. In 2004, Nellis joined the Department of Physics at Harvard University as an associate. Nellis was the president of International Association for the Advancement of High Pressure Science and Technology from 2003 to 2007.

Awards and honors 1987 - Fellow of the American Physical Society Division of Condensed Matter Physics 1998 - Duvall Award of American Physical Society Topical Group on Shock Compression 2001 - Bridgman Award of the International Association for the Advancement of High Pressure Science and Technology

Books Nellis, W. J. (2017). Ultracondensed Matter by Dynamic Compression. Cambridge University Press. Bibcode:2017umdc.book.....N.

Selected articles Nellis, W. J.; Mitchell, A. C.; van Thiel, M.; Devine, G. J.; Trainor, R. J.; Brown, N. (1 August 1983). "Equation-of-state data for molecular hydrogen and deuterium at shock pressures in the range 2–76 GPa (20–760 kbar)a)". The Journal of Chemical Physics. 79 (3): 1480–1486. Bibcode:1983JChPh..79.1480N. doi:10.1063/1.445938. ISSN 0021-9606. Nellis, W. J.; Maple, M. B.; Geballe, T. H. (3 May 1988). Gunshor, Robert L. (ed.). "Synthesis Of Metastable Superconductors By High Dynamic Pressure". Multifunctional Materials. 0878: 2. Bibcode:1988SPIE..878....2N. doi:10.1117/12.943949. Edwards, P. P.; Johnston, R. L.; Rao, C. N. R.; Tunstall, D. P.; Nellis, W. J.; Louis, A. A.; Ashcroft, N. W. (15 January 1998). "Metallization of fluid hydrogen". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. 356 (1735): 119–138. arXiv:cond-mat/9708144. Bibcode:1998RSPTA.356..119N. doi:10.1098/rsta.1998.0153.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with William J. Nellis

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis

In research: William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis 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: William J. Nellis is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1941 births, 20th-century American physicists, 21st-century American physicists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what William J. Nellis 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.
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Frequently asked questions

What is William J. Nellis in simple terms?

William J. Nellis is an American physicist.

Why does William J. Nellis 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 William J. Nellis?

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 William J. Nellis.