PHYSICIST

Edmond Becquerel

1820 - 1891

Photo of Edmond Becquerel

Icon of person Edmond Becquerel

Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel (French: [alɛksɑ̃dʁ ɛdmɔ̃ bɛkʁɛl]; 24 March 1820 – 11 May 1891), known as Edmond Becquerel, was a French physicist who studied the solar spectrum, magnetism, electricity and optics. He is credited with the discovery of the photovoltaic effect, the operating principle of the solar cell, in 1839. He is also known for his work in luminescence and phosphorescence. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Edmond Becquerel has received more than 242,788 page views. His biography is available in 36 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 33 in 2019). Edmond Becquerel is the 273rd most popular physicist (up from 306th in 2019), the 1,136th most popular biography from France (up from 1,536th in 2019) and the 28th most popular French Physicist.

Edmond Becquerel is most famous for discovering radioactivity. He discovered that uranium salts emit a form of energy that can be detected by a photographic plate even when the uranium is not in direct contact with the plate.

Memorability Metrics

  • 240k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 61.72

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 36

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 8.89

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 2.58

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among PHYSICISTS

Among physicists, Edmond Becquerel ranks 273 out of 851. Before him are Allan MacLeod Cormack, Andrew Huxley, Jagadish Chandra Bose, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, Hugh David Politzer, and Johannes Rydberg. After him are August Kundt, Carlo Rubbia, Leo Esaki, Ernest Walton, Toshihide Maskawa, and Antoine César Becquerel.

Most Popular Physicists in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1820, Edmond Becquerel ranks 18. Before him are Susan B. Anthony, Božena Němcová, Henri Vieuxtemps, William John Macquorn Rankine, Lewis A. Swift, and Mathilde Bonaparte. After him are Heungseon Daewongun, Yaqub Beg, John Tyndall, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, William Tecumseh Sherman, and John Tenniel. Among people deceased in 1891, Edmond Becquerel ranks 22. Before him are Albert Pike, Ivan Goncharov, Jules Grévy, Jan Neruda, Charles I of Württemberg, and Georges Ernest Boulanger. After him are Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia, Franz Miklosich, Édouard Lucas, Theophil Hansen, Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, and Princess Cecilie of Baden.

Others Born in 1820

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Others Deceased in 1891

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

In France

Among people born in France, Edmond Becquerel ranks 1,136 out of 6,770. Before him are Pierre Mignard (1612), William X, Duke of Aquitaine (1099), Lionel Jospin (1937), Pierre Schaeffer (1910), Marie-Guillemine Benoist (1768), and Nicolas Chamfort (1741). After him are Jacques Ibert (1890), Pierre Brice (1929), Jean Jacques Régis de Cambacérès (1753), Robert I, Count of Artois (1216), Bertran de Born (1140), and Ambroise Thomas (1811).

Others born in France

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Among PHYSICISTS In France

Among physicists born in France, Edmond Becquerel ranks 28. Before him are Alain Aspect (1947), Edme Mariotte (1620), Gérard Mourou (1944), Claude-Louis Navier (1785), Pierre-Gilles de Gennes (1932), and Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier (1754). After him are Antoine César Becquerel (1788), Anne L'Huillier (1958), Hélène Langevin-Joliot (1927), Paul-Jacques Curie (1855), Henri Pitot (1695), and Félix Savart (1791).

French born Physicists

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous