Lewi Tonks

Lewi Tonks (December 13, 1897 – July 30, 1971) was an American physicist who worked for General Electric on microwaves, plasma physics and nuclear reactors. Under Irving Langmuir, his work pioneered the study of plasma oscillations. He is also noted for the noted for his discovery (with Marvin D. Girardeau) of the Tonks–Girardeau gas.

Nuclear physicist Arthur Edward Ruark once said that "any international conference on plasma physics and controlled thermonuclear research without Lewi Tonks present would be something like Hamlet without the ghost, and without Hamlet".

Lewi I. Tonks was born in New York City on December 13, 1897.

He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Columbia University in 1918, and there completed his PhD in mathematical physics in 1923.

In 1921, he attended the lectures of Albert Einstein who was visiting Columbia University. Tonks also became a translator of Einstein's paper for The New York Times.

His studies were interrupted during World War I, where he conducted research at the New London Connecticut Naval Station on sonar for submarine detection systems.

He joined General Electric in 1923 where he worked under Irving Langmuir, who was the associate director of the research lab. Tonks' research focused on thermionic emission, ferromagnetism, and magnetrons from microwave generation. During World War II, he headed the General Electric research group on jamming magnetrons.

Tonks advocated the use of a logarithmic pressure scale for vacuum technology to replace the torr.^{[citation needed]}