Nikolai Semyonov

Nikolai Semyonov was a Russian physicist who, in the 1930s and 1940s, made significant contributions to understanding nuclear chain reactions and radiation. He focused on how atomic nuclei behave when they split (fission), which is fundamental to nuclear energy and weapons. His research helped explain how neutrons cause atoms to split and release energy in a controlled way. Semyonov was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1956, sharing it for his work on chain reactions in nuclear physics, which has been crucial for the development of nuclear reactors and atomic energy.