Michael Faraday: biography of this British physicist

Faraday was one of the most important researchers of electricity and magnetism.

Today, much of the modern world is powered mainly by electricity. The use of this type of energy is therefore not exactly unknown to us.

But in order to be able to use lamps, computers, life-support equipment or rechargeable batteries, a large number of discoveries had to be made first. And while some of these date back to before Christ, the majority of how to generate and apply electricity has been researched and discovered during the Modern Age.

One of the great pioneering personalities thanks to whom the development of studies on electricity and electromagnetism has been possible was Michael Faraday. He was the main discoverer of electromagnetic induction and electrolysis, whose practical application has made possible a very important technological development. The history of this researcher is therefore of great interest, which is the reason why in this article we are going to see a biography of Michael Faraday..

The life of Michael Faraday: a brief biography

The birth of Michael Faraday took place on September 22, 1791, in the village of Newington Butt (which today is not a village but one of the London boroughs) in the English region of Surrey. He was the third of four siblings, the sons of James Faraday and Margaret Hastwell, a stable blacksmith.

The Faraday family, working class and peasant, had very few resources and could only offer their offspring a basic education. Initially he would go to school, but later his family decided to take him out of school and make him study at home.

It was also common for children to have to contribute financially to support the family, which meant that from an early age Michael Faraday had to deliver newspapers. Also largely due to the family's beliefs, Michael Faraday was born with a strong religious conviction. he was born with a strong religious conviction, and became a member of the Sandemanian church.. This faith would be a source of peace and strength for the scientist throughout his life.

Youth and first jobs

In 1805, at the age of fourteen, the young Faraday began a period of apprenticeship in the bookbinder's trade with a bookseller for whom he had previously run several errands, George Riebau. During this period, which would last seven years, his work allowed him to have a deep contact with a large number of literary works. He also began to cultivate a certain predilection for electrical phenomena, after reading various articles and works on chemistry and electricity.

Likewise, as he grew up, so did his scientific interest (as well as his disenchantment with the mercantile world) and thanks to his brother he was able to begin to attend and join the Philosophical Society of the city, governed by John Tatum.

His contact with this group allowed him to begin to learn about the work of the chemist Humphry Davy, who was to give a series of lectures there. One of the members of the group obtained tickets for him, which enabled him to attend the lectures given by Humphry Davy. one of the members of the group obtained tickets for him, which enabled him to attend the lectures given by the chemist at the Royal Institution.. He took so many notes that he was able to make a small booklet. Faraday decided to send a copy to Davy and ask him to work as his assistant so that he could devote himself to science.

Beginning of his apprenticeship in science

Humphrey Davy received the application and, since there was a vacant assistant position and he had also had a small accident that had left him temporarily blind, he accepted Faraday first as his secretary. When his previous assistant had to be dismissed he also offered the position to Michael Faraday, who became his assistant in 1813.

Although the chemist's wife always expressed deep contempt for him and would treat him as a servant, Humphry was to become his protector and teacher. and together with him Faraday was able to travel (despite the conflicts of the time), work and investigate aspects such as the composition of diamond or witness the discovery of benzene.

He would also establish numerous contacts and learn fundamentally about chemistry. In this aspect he came to excel, something that meant that a few years after returning from these trips Faraday could begin to teach chemistry. In 1815 he published Analysis of Caustic Lime of Tuscanyhis first work, as well as numerous articles.

Major discoveries

Later he was asked to write opinion articles on the scientific contributions of various authors, something that would make him recreate his experiments and meet the original authors.

It is in this context that Faraday begins to make important discoveries: in 1821 he discovered the way to existing knowledge of electromagnetism in a first electromagnetic rotor.. That same year he married a young woman he had met at his church, Sarah Barnard, and following his earlier success he began to focus and publish on the subject of electricity and magnetism.

In 1824 he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society, and a year later he was appointed director of the Royal Society laboratory run by his mentor at the time he met him. He began to give talks and lectures both Christmas (the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures) and weekly (the Friday Evening Discourses).

In 1831 he made another of his great discoveries, electromagnetic induction. During the year 1832 he discovered, or rather empirically demonstrated the existence of electrolysis.. Also at that time, specifically in 1836, he developed the Faraday Cage in order to generate an electromagnetically protected area to prevent external electricity from reaching its interior. He was awarded various prizes and honors, including some that were refused, such as the presidency of the Royal Society or a knighthood.

Another of his researches, this time linked to the study of the luminous force, gave rise to the well-known Faraday effect.gave rise to the well-known Faraday effect. This effect proposes that the action of a magnetic field can affect the polarization of light, something that corresponded to his idea that light, electricity and magnetism are related.

Final years and death

The 1860s would be the decade that would begin to mark the decline of this great author. Already in 1839 he had suffered from problems and a nervous breakdown, and little by little he was beginning to show was beginning to manifest symptoms at the neuropsychiatric level.. He died at his home in Hampton Court at the age of 75, on August 25, 1867.

His legacy is enormous: his research has greatly improved our understanding of electromagnetic phenomena and inspired authors such as Maxwell and Thomas Edison. Electric motors or even the light bulb would hardly have been possible without his work.