Pierre Curie, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903.

Pierre Curie (Paris, May 15, 1859 - Paris, April 19, 1906) was a French physicist, pioneer in the study of radioactivity and discoverer of piezoelectricity, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903, together with his wife, Marie Curie, in recognition of their extraordinary services carried out jointly in the research of radiation discovered by Henri Becquerel.

Born in Paris on 15 May 1859, Pierre Curie was the son of Eugène Curie (1827–1910), a physician of French Catholic origin from Alsace, and Sophie-Claire Curie (née Depouilly; 1832–1897). He was educated by his father and in his early teens showed a strong aptitude for mathematics and geometry. When he was 16, he obtained a bachelor's degree in mathematics. At the age of 18, he obtained his licentiate, the equivalent of a US master's degree, in physical sciences from the Faculty of Sciences of the Sorbonne, also known as the University of Paris. He did not immediately proceed to a doctorate due to lack of money. Instead, he worked as a laboratory instructor. While Pierre Curie was preparing for his bachelor's degree in science, he worked in the laboratory of Jean-Gustave Bourbouze in the Faculty of Sciences. In 1895, he received his doctorate from the University of Paris. His doctoral dissertation consisted of his research on magnetism. After receiving his doctorate, he became a professor of physics and in 1900 he became a professor in the faculty of science.

First discoveries

In 1880, he discovered piezoelectricity with his brother Jacques, that is, the phenomenon by which an electric potential is generated when a crystal is compressed. Later, both brothers demonstrated the opposite effect: that crystals can deform when subjected to a potential.

During his doctorate and the following years, he dedicated himself to researching magnetism. He developed a very sensitive torsion balance to study magnetic phenomena and studied ferromagnetism, paramagnetism and diamagnetism. As a result of these studies, it is worth noting the discovery of the effect of temperature on paramagnetism, now known as Curie's law. He also discovered that ferromagnetic substances have a temperature above which they lose their ferromagnetic character; this temperature is known as the Curie temperature or point. Pierre Curie was introduced to Maria Skłodowska by his friend, the physicist Józef Wierusz-Kowalski. Curie took him to her laboratory as her student. His admiration for her grew when he realized that she would not inhibit his research. He began to consider Skłodowska as his muse. She rejected his initial proposal, but finally agreed to marry him on July 26, 1895. From that moment on, they dedicated themselves to the study of the then innovative field of radioactivity and worked on the isolation of polonium and radium.

In the late 19th century, Pierre Curie was investigating the mysteries of ordinary magnetism when he became aware of the spiritualist experiments of other European scientists, such as Charles Richet and Camille Flammarion. Pierre Curie initially thought that systematic investigation of the paranormal might help with some unanswered questions about magnetism. He wrote to Marie, then his fiancée: "I must admit that these spiritual phenomena interest me intensely. I believe they are questions that deal with physics." Pierre Curie's notebooks from this period show that he read many books on spiritualism. He did not attend séances such as those of Eusapia Palladino in Paris in June 1905 as a mere spectator, and his goal was certainly not to communicate with spirits. He viewed the séances as scientific experiments, attempting to control various parameters, and taking detailed notes of each observation. Despite studying spiritualism, Curie was an atheist.