Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

Max von Laue

9 October 1879, Pfaffendorf near Koblenz – 24 April 1960, Berlin

Max von Laue studied physics at several universities, including Berlin. He received his doctorate under Max Planck at Berliner Universität in 1903, and qualified as a professor three years later. He worked as an associate lecturer in Berlin until he went to Munich in 1909. He returned to Berliner Universität as a professor in 1919 and began working at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Physics.

In 1912, together with Walter Friedrich and Paul Knipping, von Laue discovered the diffraction of X-rays by crystals. This explained both the wave nature of X-rays and the lattice structure of crystals.

Von Laue was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics for this work in 1914.