Referee's report by John Sealy Edward Townsend, on a paper 'The photo-electric discharge between metallic surfaces in different gases' by W Mansergh Varley

Description

Sectional Committee: Physics and Chemistry

Recommended for publication in Philosophical Transactions, if the gases were carefully prepared. The experimental part is good and should be published in full. In the discussion of the observations hardly any new facts are brought out. Some of the new methods of deducing known results are erroneous. The curves should be reproduced and the figures of apparatus numbers two and three. Figures one and four are quite unnecessary. In general the experimental work has been carefully carried out and is valuable as it shows a comparison between the currents in different gases obtained from a constant source of ultra-violet light. The author refers to results previously obtained by continental experimenters without reference and is apparently unaware of some of the elementary experiments on the verification of the theory of collision. Provides points of particular criticism in an appended note with references to particular pages of the original paper. Chief points concern: giving the size of the wire in the gague and the number of wires per centimeter; there is no discussion of the removal of HCl gas from H2 and CO2; new facts established should be clearly indicated; the matter relating to ionization by collision is not original; references to sources should be made; data should be given respecting the connection, if any, between sparking potentials and the potential gradient at which ionization by collision begins; reference should be made to how it is known that the mean free path of corpuscles in H is twice that in air or CO2.

[Published in the Philosophical Transactions A, 1904].

Endorsed on verso as received 11 June 1903.

Reference number

RR/16/125

Earliest possible date

June 1903

Physical description

Standardised form (type A)

Page extent

4 pages

Format

Manuscript