Wilson, Robert R.

Wilson, Robert R. (Rathbun) (1914–  ) physicist; born in Frontier, Wyo. He was affiliated with Princeton (1940–46) when he took leave to become head of the experimental nuclear division that developed the atomic bomb at Los Alamos, N.M. (1944–46). He continued his research at Cornell (1947–67), then moved to the University of Chicago (1967–80), where he designed the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and became its first director (1967–78). He also taught at Columbia University (1980–83).