PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Childhood
He was born in Cheetham Hill, England. His father was a bookseller who wanted Thomson to be an engineer. But he got a small scholarship to attend trinity college at Cambridge.
Thomson worked at the cavendish laboratory after graduation. He was then appointed as the cavendish professor of physics at age 28.
Research
In 1894, Thomson began studying cathode rays. It was a popular research topic at the time because the nature of cathode rays was unclear.
Thomson devised better equipment that had been used before. When he passed the rays through the vacuum, he was able to measure the angle at which they were deflected and calculated the ratio of the electrical charge.
Thomson determined that all matter is made of tiny particles that are much smaller than atoms. In 1906 he began studying positively charged ions or positive rays.
In 1912 he channeled a stream of ionized neon through a magnetic and electric field.
