The Role of Analogy in George Gamow's Derivation of Drop Energy

Abstract

This article examines the role of the liquid drop analogy in George Gamow's theory of nuclear structure and his subsequent derivation of nuclear energy. It argues that the correspondences constituting the analogy served distinct but cooperative ends, requiring Gamow to posit a relatively simple nuclear geometry that set him apart from his contemporaries, mostly shell theorists, and led to his successful derivation of nuclear energy in the fall of 1928.

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