Herschbach, Dudley R (1932– )

US chemist who shared the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1986 with Yuan T Lee and John C Polanyi for their researches into the dynamics of the processes which occur when atoms and molecules react.

In his experiments, Herschbach collided beams of molecules and atoms at one point in space. The molecules and atoms reacted to form new chemical products. The energy of the reacting molecules or atoms was carefully controlled and the properties of the products formed – their chemical composition, their angular distribution from the point of collision, their speed, and rotational and vibrational energy – measured. Using the data obtained, Herschbach was able to deduce a detailed picture of the events taking place during the chemical reaction.

Herschbach was born in San José, California, USA, and entered Stanford University, California, in 1950, receiving his master's degree in 1955. His education continued at Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts, where he was awarded his doctorate in chemical physics in 1958. He was appointed an assistant professor at the University of California at Berkeley in 1959, and associate professor in 1961. He returned to Harvard as professor of chemistry in 1963.