Albert Edward Litherland facts for kids

Albert Edward "Ted" Litherland (born March 12, 1928, in Wallasey, UK) is a nuclear physicist. He is famous for his important work in a field called accelerator mass spectroscopy (AMS).

About Ted Litherland

Ted Litherland is a scientist who studies the tiny parts inside atoms. This field is called nuclear physics. He helped create a special way to measure very small amounts of certain elements. This method is known as Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, or AMS.

His Journey in Science

Ted Litherland studied at the University of Liverpool. He earned his first science degree in 1949. Later, he received his PhD in 1955.

From 1955 to 1966, he worked at Chalk River Laboratories in Canada. Here, he worked with large machines called van de Graaff accelerators. These machines speed up tiny particles. He helped develop the world's first "tandem accelerator." This new machine allowed scientists to study heavy atoms in new ways. His work helped us understand how the parts of atoms behave.

In 1966, Litherland became a professor at the University of Toronto. There, he made a huge discovery. With Harry Gove and Ken Purser, he realized that accelerators could measure tiny amounts of Carbon-14. Carbon-14 is a special type of carbon. It is used to find the age of old objects. This was the start of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS).

What is AMS?

AMS is a super sensitive way to count atoms. It can find incredibly small amounts of specific atoms in a sample. This is like finding a single grain of sand on a huge beach!

AMS is used for many things, such as:

• Dating ancient objects: Scientists use AMS to find the age of old bones, wood, or cloth. This helps us learn about history.
• Studying the environment: It can track pollution or changes in the climate.
• Finding rare elements: It helps detect tiny traces of certain elements.

The IsoTrace Lab

In 1982, Ted Litherland helped start the IsoTrace Laboratory. This lab was at the University of Toronto. "IsoTrace" stands for "ISOTope and Rare Atom Counting Equipment." The lab used AMS to do important research. It helped with archaeological dating and finding trace elements.

The IsoTrace Lab was used for many years. In 2013, it was replaced by a newer lab. This new lab has even better equipment.

Awards and Honors

Ted Litherland has received many awards for his scientific work. Some of them include:

• 1971 – Gold Medal from the Canadian Association of Physicists
• 1974 – Rutherford Medal from the British Institute of Physics
• 1980 – Killam Scholarship
• 1986 – Guggenheim Fellowship
• 1993 – Henry Marshall Tory Medal from the Royal Society of Canada
• 1998 – Honorary Doctor of Science from the University of Toronto