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Historical Records of Australian Science Historical Records of Australian Science Society
The history of science, pure and applied, in Australia, New Zealand and the southwest Pacific
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RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)
Online Early

Robert Woodhouse Crompton 1926–2022

Erich Weigold A , Zoran Lj. Petrovic B C and Stephen J. Buckman https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7798-4827 A *
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Research School of Physics, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 0200, Australia.

B Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Knez Mihailova 35, 11001 Belgrade, Serbia.

C School of Engineering, Ulster University, Jordanstown, Co. Antrim, BT37 0QB, UK.

* Correspondence to: stephen.buckman@anu.edu.au

Historical Records of Australian Science https://doi.org/10.1071/HR24028
Published online: 9 December 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Australian Academy of Science. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Robert (Bob) Crompton was a towering figure in low energy electron and ion physics in Australia and internationally, as witnessed by his seminal publications on swarm physics, atomic and molecular physics and gaseous electronics generally, his widely-read monograph with Sir Leonard Huxley on the subject of charged-particle transport, and the many personal and professional accolades and awards he received for his contributions to science, science policy and the general community. Born and educated in Adelaide, Crompton spent the majority of his long career at the Australian National University in Canberra, with numerous sabbatical periods in overseas laboratories where he fostered many important international research collaborations and lasting friendships.

Keywords: Academy, Australia, electron, physicist, science, swarm.

References

Buckman, S. J., and Lohmann, B. (1986) Low-energy total cross section measurements for electron scattering from helium and argon, Journal of Physics B, 19(16), 2547-2563.
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Australian Academy of Science 2014Interview with Professor Bob Crompton, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPqozs5jkzo, viewed 29 November 2024.

Crompton, R. W., Elford, M. T., and Gascoigne, J. (1965) Precision measurements of the Townsend energy ratio for electron swarms in highly uniform electric field, Australian Journal of Physics, 18, 409-436.
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Crompton, R. W., Elford, M. T., and Jory, R. L. (1967) The momentum transfer cross section for electrons in helium, Australian Journal of Physics, 20, 369-400.
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Crompton, R. W., Gibson, D. K., and McIntosh, A. I. (1969) The cross section for the J=0→2 rotational excitation of hydrogen by slow electrons, Australian Journal of Physics, 22, 715-731.
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Gibson, D. K. (1970) The cross sections for rotational excitation of H2 and D2 by low energy electrons, Australian Journal of Physics, 23, 683-696.
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Huxley, L. G. H. and Crompton, R. W. (1974) The diffusion and drift of electrons in gases, Wiley, New York, 669 pp.

Lin, S. L., Robson, R. E., and Mason, E. A. (1979) Moment theory of electron drift and diffusion in neutral gases in an electrostatic field, Journal of Chemical Physics, 71, 3483-3498.
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Morrison, M. A., Crompton, R. W., Saha, B. C., and Petrović, Z. Lj (1987) Near-threshold rotational and vibrational excitation of H2 by electron impact: theory and experiment, Australian Journal of Physics, 40, 239-281.
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Nesbet, R. K. (1979) Variational calculations of accurate e—-He cross sections below 19 eV, Physical Review, A20(1), 58-70.
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Petrović, Z. Lj., and Crompton, R. W. (1985) Thermal electron attachment to SF6 at room temperature and 500K, Journal of Physics B, 18, 2777-2791.
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Reid, I. D. (1979) An investigation of the accuracy of numerical solutions of Boltzmann’s equation for electron swarms in gases with large inelastic cross sections, Australian Journal of Physics, 32, 231-254.
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