Background
Bruce Mahan was born August 17, 1930 and was the son of Arthur E. Mahan and Clara Blanche Gray Mahan and grew up in New Britain, Connecticut.
- Photos
- Works
- Photos
- Works
Bruce Mahan
Edit Profile
Education
University
He entered College in 1948 on a fellowship and graduated with an Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry in 1952 as one of the top students.
Career
He was the youngest of three children. He continued with his doctoral work at working with the physical chemist George Kistiakowsky on the photolysis of methyl ketene. He received his Doctor of Philosophy in 1956.
Mahan was hired as an instructor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of California at in 1956 and he remained there throughout his career.
In 1959 he was an assistant professor and became department chair in 1968. Mahan"s research was in the area of gas phase kinetics and photolysis, particularly gas-phase ion chemistry and energy transfer.
He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 1975 and died October 12, 1982 at the young age of 52.
Achievements
-
He was an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow 1963-1965 and received the gold medal California Section Award of the American Chemical Society in 1968. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1976. The Bruce H. Mahan Chair in Physical Chemistry was established in 2005 and is currently held by David Chandler. The Bruce H. Mahan Teaching Award is given to outstanding graduate student chemistry instructors at University of California.
Membership
National Academy of Sciences.
-
Born
-
Died
October 12, 1982 (aged 52)