James John Brophy (1926 - 1991)
Education
- 1947
- B.S., Electrical Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology
- 1949
- M.S., Physics, Illinois Institute of Technology - Emission of Electrons from Surfaces of Varying Roughness
- 1951
- Ph.D., Physics, Illinois Institute of Technology - Secondary Emission of Electrons from Liquid Metal Surfaces
Positions
- 1951 - 1953
- Research Physicist, IIT Research Institute
- 1953 - 1956
- Supervisor, Solid State Physics, IIT Research Institute
- 1956 - 1961
- Assistant Director of Physics Research, IIT Research Institute
- 1961 - 1967
- Director of Technical Development, IIT Research Institute
- 1967 - 1976
- Professor of Physics and Academic Vice President, Illinois Institute of Technology
- 1976 - 1980
- Senior Vice President, Institute of Gas Technology
- 1980 - 1991
- Professor of Physics and Vice President for Research, University of Utah
Biography
James John Brophy was born near Chicago and studied at Illinois Institute of
Technology, where he earned his B.S. (Electrical Engineering), M.S.
(Physics) and Ph.D. (Physics). Upon graduation, Brophy began a research
career at the IIT Research Institute where he became an expert on low
frequency noise in solids and made important contributions to the
understanding of 1/f noise. Brophy was the author of over 100 publications
and several books, among them a classic textbook on electronics, Basic
Electronics for Scientists.
In addition to his research activities, Brophy had a distinguished career in
research and academic administration, starting with the IIT Research
Institute, Illinois Institute of Technology, the Institute of Gas Technology
and finally the University of Utah. While at the University of Utah, Brophy
played a major role in obtaining state funding to establish an institute for
cold fusion.
Brophy was a Fellow of the American Physical Society and member of Sigma Xi
and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He was also a
close childhood friend and classmate of
Hugh Hefner.[1]
Notable Publications
- "Preliminary Study of the Electrical Properties of a Semiconducting Diamond",
J.J. Brophy, Phys. Rev. 99, 1336-1337 (1955)
- "Excess Noise in n-Type Germanium", J.J. Brophy, 106, 675-678
- "Statistics of 1/f Noise", J.J. Brophy, Phys. Rev. 166, 827-831 (1968).
- "Fluctuations in Luminescent Junctions", J.J. Brophy, J. Appl. Phys.
38, 2465-2469 (1967).
- "Basic Electronics for Scientists", J.J. Brophy, (McGraw-Hill, New
York 1966).
- "Electronic Processes in Materials", L.V. Azaroff and J.J. Brophy,
(McGraw-Hill, New York, 1963).
References
- [1] Mr. Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream, Steven Watts
(John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2008).