John P. Hirth, Professor Emeritus
College of Engineering and Architecture
John Hirth's work on thin film formation and epitaxial deposition has had a significant influence in the semiconductor industry where dislocations in a thin layer have a detrimental effect on conductivity. He is most noted for his fundamental theoretical and experimental contributions to the study of line defects (dislocations), which are key to the strength and deformation characteristics of materials. He has been recognized for advancing the understanding of the behavior of materials at the atomic level and for his book, "Theory of Dislocations," the premier publication of line defects and deformations. He has also patented a method for creating displacement reactions for use in high-temperature coatings and porous electrodes such as those used in the production of aluminum.
Renowned for his scientific and engineering expertise, Professo Hirth has been called upon as an advisor to many government agencies including the Army Research Office, Argonne National Laboratory, the National Bureau of Standards (now NIST), Los Alamos National Laboratory, Office of Naval Research, and the National Academy of Sciences. In 1967, he was a founding member of an advisory council to the Department of Defense's Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Biography
After serving in the U.S. Air Force from 1953 to 1957, John Hirth began his long-term career in academia. He was a Fulbright fellow at Bristol University, England, from 1957 to 1958 and served as assistant professor at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University) from 1958 to 1961. He was with Ohio State University from 1961 to 1988. He was appointed professor at the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University in 1988 and continued in that capacity until his retirement in 1999.
Hirth has co-edited six seminal books in materials
science and published more than 380 journal articles. He
also served as
editor-in-chief of one of the most respected
international journals in materials science, Scripta
Metallurgica et Materialia. He received his Ph.D. from
Carnegie-Mellon University in 1958 and in 1953 received
his bachelor's and master's degrees in metallurgical
engineering from Ohio State University.
Awards and Honors
- 2005 Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Engineering Sciences and Technologies
- 2002 Honorary Member of American Institute of Mining,Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers
- 1999 Nadai Medal from the International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition
- 1997 Carnegie Mellon Dickson Prize for Science
- 1994 Gold Medal for the American Society of Metals
- 1994 Member, National Academy of Sciences
- 1993 Lamme Meritorious Achievement Award
- 1992 Member, Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
- 1989 A.E. White Award from American Society of Metals International
- 1989 Acta Metallurgica Gold Medal
- 1987 Presidential Professor
- 1982 Matthewson Gold Medalist from AIME
- 1979 Distinguished Research Award
- 1974 Member, National Academy of Engineering
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John Hirth's achievements have been in the areas of
understanding, characterizing, and modeling the behavior
of materials at atomic and microstructural levels.