Page 46 - Neutrons for Sciences and Society

Neutrons for Science
before Nazism. M.L. worked with Bothe on the development
of using coincidence of signals in pairs and sets of detectors for which Bothe was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1954. M.L. said to me that he considered it perfectly justified. There is nothing of special importance until in December 1938 Hahn and Strassmann discovered the fission of the uranium atom. A short while after
the German ministry of defence created a group of scientists and the military to work on the application of this discovery to create new weapons. This team was known as the Uranverein (Uranium club). As a member of the group Bothe led major activities in the institute (tests to purify uranium-235 and calculations to build a reactor) related to the development of an atomic weapon. Two of his assistants were also involved: Fleischmann who was appointed director of a new institute in occupied Strasbourg, and Wolfgang Gentner39 who was responsible for German research efforts in Paris. Bothe hated the Nazi regime but felt he had to remain loyal to his homeland. Maier-Leibnitz was detached at the beginning of the war to the Luftwaffe, working in France for the meteorological service. He returned to Heidelberg in 1942 when the government gave absolute priority to research, and sent scientists back to
their laboratories. Having already served his country Bothe had a dispensation from the military program and was able to return to his basic research leading to the publication of two papers after the war. M.L. thus never participated in the Uranverein.
After an operation for appendicitis he met Rita Lepper working as a nurse in the clinic. After an engagement of two months
they were married on 25 August 1938. They had three children,
39 In Paris Gentner was at the origin of courageous deeds. Amongst others he managed to obtain the freedom of Paul Langevin who had been taken hostage. He was one of the members of the first Steering Committee of the ILL.
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