Father and son have something to Bragg about

‘"We are now able to look ten thousand times deeper into the structure of the matter that makes up our universe than when we had to depend on the microscope alone,"
Sir William Henry Bragg

In 1915, University of Adelaide mathematics and physics lecturer, William Henry Bragg and his son Lawrence (William Lawrence), a graduate of the same fields, certainly had something to brag about. The duo was jointly awarded a Nobel Prize for their discovery and experimentation of X-ray crystallography. Their discovery was so significant that 100 years on it still impacts many aspects of our lives - from determining the structure of DNA and proteins, to the development of new drugs and chemicals. As the only father and son duo to have been awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize, they are today recognised as one of the most scientifically brilliant teams in history.

William and Lawrence had different interests and expertise, each bringing unique skills to the partnership. William had a strong experimental background - in fact it was he who took the first X-ray images in South Australia in 1886. Lawrence, on the other hand held a deep interest in crystals and atomic reflection. It was not until 1912 that their joint interest in X-ray diffraction was sparked. Both were intrigued by the work of German physicist Max von Laue, who proved that X-rays were waves of light with a very short wavelength by diffracting them through crystals.

By extending on this work, William constructed an X-ray spectrometer which enabled the pair to examine X-rays from crystals at various angles. Through analysing a variety of substances Lawrence developed a simplified calculation to determine the structure of a crystal - now known as Braggs Law. Through his study, he also showed that sodium chloride in solution was made up of ions and not molecules, which was fundamental to the understanding of solutions. Together, the duo initiated the whole science of X-ray crystallography.

The impact of the Bragg's work has been far reaching. Today, X-ray crystallography is used across many fields and applications of science including medicine and pharmacy, physics, chemistry, mining and biological sciences. In particular, it has helped us to manufacture medicines, understand how aspirin works and has enabled HIV drugs to be developed. But the greatest breakthrough resulting from X-ray crystallography was its role in establishing the structure of DNA – the building blocks of life.

Baroness Susan Greenfield, the recent Director of the Royal Institution of London best surmised their impact when she said of the Braggs, ‘The Braggs’ contribution was the first step towards the mapping of the genome, molecular biology, and all the genetic modifications, for good or ill, that will characterise much of our lives, and much of those of our children and grandchildren in the 21st century’.

At the University of Adelaide the Braggs are recognised not only for their scientific achievements but for their contribution and involvement in university life. In his role as Professor of Pure and Applied Mathematics, William encouraged student activities, particularly the formation of the Union. He also held the belief that universities should ‘act as the centre from which all education radiates’. To encourage this he welcomed country teachers to his lectures to ensure they had access to the best and latest thinking. He also presented a series of public lectures, with his final being the ‘mysterious X-rays’, which took place before his ground breaking research. As a graduate, Lawrence was part of the student community, but even from a young age he was exposed to his father’s teaching passion. In fact, it was Lawrence’s fractured elbow that was captured in the first X-ray images.

Today, the University honours the Braggs’ work with the Bragg Laboratories and the Bragg Crystallography Facility. The new home of our Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS) has also recently been named The Braggs. The facilities aim to support training for undergraduate and postgraduate students and continue to advance our cutting edge research.