Bruno Ferretti

Bruno Ferretti (* 1913 in Bologna ; † August 11, 2010 ) was an Italian elementary particle physicist.

Ferretti studied in Bologna and in 1937 became a member of Enrico Fermi's group in Rome at his invitation. When Fermi left Italy in 1938 to go to the United States , he suggested that Ferretti take over his lectures. In 1947 he became a professor at the University of Milan and in 1948 in Rome. In Rome he was one of the founding members of CERN with Edoardo Amaldi . In 1957 he was the first director of the CERN theory group in Geneva. In 1959 he was replaced by Markus Fierz and went to Bologna, where he was professor of theoretical physics until 1988.

Ferretti first worked on cosmic radiation (with Gilberto Bernardini , Oreste Piccioni , Gian Carlo Wick ) and then on quantum field theory. Most recently he dealt with fundamental questions of quantum mechanics and gravitational wave detectors. He also dealt with speculative ideas (such as a neutrino theory of light), statistical mechanics, nuclear physics and developed a new type of nuclear reactor, the prototype of which was built near Bologna.

Web links

• Obituary CERN Courier