Compton, Arthur

Compton, Arthur (Holly)

(born Sept. 10, 1892, Wooster, Ohio, U.S.—died March 15, 1962, Berkeley, Calif.) U.S. physicist. He taught at the University of Chicago (1923–45) and later served as chancellor (1945–54) and professor (1953–61) at Washington University. He is best known for his discovery and explanation of the Compton effect, for which he shared with C.T.R. Wilson the 1927 Nobel Prize for Physics. He was later instrumental in initiating the Manhattan Project, and he directed the development of the first nuclear reactors.