The Italian Alessandro Volta is a physicist and chemist, a pioneer in the field of electricity, the discoverer of methane. This wonderful scientist was idolized by his students at the University of Pavia.
Childhood
In the patriarchal family of padre (father) Filippo Volta and his wife Maddalena, daughter of Count Inzago, whom he married secretly, a fourth child was born. He was christened as Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio. It was February 18, 1745 in the ancient city of Como in picturesque Lombardy. For parents, this was not a significant event, and they quickly gave the baby to the nurse's village, just forgetting little Sandrino. The kid grew up freely in the village of Brunate for about three years. Physically strong, healthy, lively, he spoke very poorly, since no one taught him. It could never have crossed anyone's mind that the pride of Italy — Alessandro Volta — the physicist who would advance the science of electricity — would grow out of the kid.
When the boy was seven years old, his father died, and his uncle, a canon, took the child to his house. He was a learned man and took seriously the upbringing of a child. A lively and inquisitive boy quickly spoke, began to learn Latin, history, arithmetic, rules of conduct. Everything was given to him with ease and without tension. Alessandro was very interested in art, especially music. He turned into a sociable and witty teenager. Alessandro was struck by the news of the earthquake in Lisbon, and he firmly decided to unravel the mystery of such disasters. His indefatigable curiosity almost led to death. Once he examined in a deep manner the “golden sparkle” at the bottom, accidentally fell into the water and almost drowned. Later it turned out that pieces of mica sparkled in the sun under water.
Youth
The house of the uncle, who foresaw the living mind of his pupil, was filled with scientific books. Young Volta - a physicist by vocation, studied, visiting the house of his nurse, to make barometers and thermometers (with her husband). The ability to work with his hands will come in handy later in the manufacture of electrical appliances. Then his uncle gave it at age 12 to teach philosophy to Jesuit monks. Soon, his uncle noticed that they wanted to prepare his nephew for tonsure, and took him.
Explosion of interest in the natural sciences
The return of Halley's comet, as predicted by English scientists, attracted Alessandro to the work of another English genius - Newton. The young man begins to clearly realize his vocation - the natural sciences: he is studying the theory of gravity, trying to explain electricity. So gradually a physicist grows up in young Volta. Upon learning that in 1752 B. Franklin discovered the device, which we call a lightning rod (which is not entirely accurate), the young man in 1768, striking the imagination of all the townspeople, places it on his roof.
Work
From the age of 29 Volta has been working at the Como Royal Gymnasium. A year later, he improved the device, which creates static electricity - electroforus. Then he studies the chemistry of gases, and he manages to isolate methane. It took two years. With him, he developed an experiment - the ignition of methane by an electric spark in a closed vessel. Volta studied what we now call electric capacitance, and also developed means for studying electric potential (V), charge (Q), and established that for a given object they are proportional. Volta made these discoveries in physics while working in Como.
Five years later, he was invited as a professor at the University of Pavia. Here he organized the Department of Experimental Physics. Forty years worked for her, leading her, Volta. The physicist created one of the first options for an electric battery based on the theory put forward by Luigi Galvani.
Galvani experimented with a frog. Her leg served as an electrolyte. Volta understood this, replaced the frog’s leg with brine-soaked paper, and discovered a stream of electricity. Then he created a device - a prototype of an electric battery. It was called a "volt pole" and consisted of two electrodes.
One was from zinc, the other from copper. Sulfuric or hydrochloric acid mixed with water served as an electrolyte. His battery created a steady electric current.
Recognition of merit
Currently, a unit of measurement of electric voltage is named after him. It sounds like a volt.
The lunar crater was named after Volta in 1964.
The Italian physicist Volta in 1809 became a member of the Royal Institute of the Netherlands. Napoleon was interested in his work.
For work in the field of physics, he awarded Alessandro Volta the title of Count in 1801. Napoleon created the Volta Prize. It was awarded in the 19th century by the French Academy of Sciences for scientific achievements in the field of electric power.
His family life was also successful. Alessandro married in 1794 the aristocrat Teresa Peregrini and raised three children with her: Zanino, Flaminio and Luigi.
The physicist retired in 1819 and retired to his Camnago estate. In it, he died at the 83rd year of his life in 1827. He is buried in his estate. This can put an end to the biography of the physicist Volta. His biography is completed, but has remained for centuries. One can only add that it was a deeply religious person. As he once said himself: “By the special mercy of God, I never wavered in faith. The gospel can only bear good fruit. ”