Joseph John Thomson

Joseph John Thomson was a physicist who, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, discovered the electron, a tiny negatively charged particle inside atoms. Using a specialized experiment with cathode rays, he showed that atoms are not the smallest building blocks, but contain even smaller particles. His discovery was crucial in understanding atomic structure and earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1906. Thomson's work laid the foundation for modern atomic physics, changing how scientists view matter and leading to advances in chemistry, physics, and technology.