Beyond the infrared: a centenary of Heinrich Rubens’s death

Abstract

AbstractHeinrich Rubens (Wiesbaden, 1865, Berlin, 1922) was the first scientist to study the large gap between the conventional infrared range and the electrical wave regime, better known today as the terahertz gap. To this end, he produced numerous original instruments and was almost single-handedly responsible for all research on this region up to the 1920s. His research, motivated by Hertz’s demonstration of the electromagnetic theory of light, led him to contribute seminal works on blackbody radiation and interferometric spectroscopy that have been almost forgotten in modern expositions of these topics. On occasion of the centenary of his death, this work aims to critically assess his legacy, as well as to revitalize this important figure for a newer generation of spectroscopists.