Elmer Samuel Imes (1883–1941) born in Memphis, Tennessee, was the second African-American to earn a Ph. D. in Physics and among the first African American scientists to make important contributions to Modern physics.
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Imes was born to Elizabeth Wallace and Benjamin A. Imes both of which were college educated; his father a graduate of Oberlin College. Imes attended grammar school in Oberlin, Ohio and completed his high school education at the Agricultural and Mechanical High School in Norman, Alabama. Imes graduated from Fisk University in 1903 with a degree in science.[1] Around 1919, Imes became married to Harlem Renaissance writer, Nella Larsen. The couple lived in Harlem becoming part of the Harlem intellectual society which included intellectuals such as Langston Hughes and W.E.B. Du Bois [2]
Imes’ research and doctoral thesis led to the publication of Measurements on the Near-Infrared Absorption of Some Diamotic Gases in November 1919 in the Astrophysical Journal. This work was followed by a paper co-authored and presented jointly with Harrison McAllister Randall The Fine Structure of the Near Infra-Red Absorption Bands of HCI,HBr, and HF at the American Physical Society and published in the Physical Review in 1920.[3] His work demonstrated for the first time that Quantum Theory could be applied to radiation in all regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, to the rotational energy states of molecules as well as the vibration and electronic levels. His work provided an early verification of Quantum Theory.[2] [4] [5]
It was one of the earliest applications of high resolution infrared spectroscopy and provided the first detailed spectra of molecules giving way to the study molecular structure through infrared spectroscopy.[2] [4] [6]
Upon graduating from Fisk, Imes taught mathematics and physics at Georgia Normal and Agricultural Institute in Albany, Georgia (presently Albany State University) and the Emerson Institute in Mobile, Alabama. Imes returned to Fisk in 1913 as an instructor of science and mathematics. During his tenure there, Imes earned a Master’s degree in science from Fisk University.
In 1918, Imes earned a Ph. D. in Physics at the University of Michigan where he studied under Harrison McAllister Randall becoming the second African American to receive a Ph. D. in Physics since Edward Bouchet, did so from Yale University in 1876.
In the early 1920s, Imes found difficulty in securing employment in academia. As a result, he became a physics consultant and researcher in physics at the Federal Engineers Development Corporation, in 1922 and with the Burrows Magnetic Equipment Corporation in 1924. In 1927, Imes went to work as a research engineer at E.A. Everett Signal Supplies.[2] [4] [5]
During the period Imes spent in the scientific and materials industry, his work resulted in four patents for instruments which were used for measuring magnetic and electric properties.[2]
In 1930, Imes returned to Fisk University where he served as Chair of the Physics Department. Imes is credited with the academic development of the physics programs at Fisk from which many of his students went on to obtain doctoral degrees from schools such as the University of Michigan. While at Fisk, Imes developed a course in Cultural Physics.
In 1931, Imes was named one of the thirteen most Gifted Black Americans.[1]
In 1939, he conducted research in magnetic materials at the Physics Department at New York University and continued as chair of the physics department at Fisk until his death in 1941.
Sigma Xi National Honor Society; The American Physical Society; The American Society for Testing Materials; The American Institute of Electrical Engineers; The Elmer S. Imes Scholarship, the National Society of Black Physicists, est. 2006.[1]