The Figure of Jan Czochralski as an Example of a Scientist, Teacher and Patriot for the Youth of Today to Imitate (1885 – 1953)

Abstract

The article analyses the life path and activities of the world-recognized Polish scientist, inventor, metallurgist, patron and philanthropist, writer, professor of the Warsaw Polytechnic Jan Czochralski (1885 - 1953). He is considered one of the four most famous and most cited Polish scientists who influenced the development of civilization. In terms of the greatness and significance of his scientific achievements, he is placed in the same row as the world-famous Poles M. Copernicus, M. Skłodowska-Curie, I. Łukasiewicz, who not only glorified Poland, but also changed the world. The purpose of the article is to study and analyze the main milestones of J. Czochralski's creative activity and the role of his scientific achievements. Research methods. Theoretical methods were used as synthesis analysis, systematization, comparison, classification, generalization. The results. The life path, the main stages of Jan Czochralski's activity against the background of historical events of the end of the 19th and the first half of the 20th centuries are revealed. The trials that the scientist underwent, unjust accusations of helping the Third Reich, and the reasons for his persecution are shown (he was fully rehabilitated only in 2011). Patriotism, hard work, perseverance, humanism, which contributed to successful teaching activities are emphasized as the personal qualities of Jan Czochralski. The most important achievements of the outstanding Polish scientist are analysed: the method of growing silicon single crystals, which are used in modern electronic and digital technology, in solar energy, and in jewellery; the discovery of alloys for railway bearings (known as B-metal); the invention of the radio microscope as the predecessor of the modern atomic force microscope, the enrichment of research tools. Jan Czochralski is a scientist, inventor, metallurgist, and philanthropist. He started processes that we now interpret as technology transfer. He is an author of poetry collections and manuals, a university professor who created a new image of a teacher, an entrepreneur and a person who believed in family values. He was a comprehensively developed personality who combined intellectual achievements and aesthetics, spiritual and moral qualities and hard work. Conclusions. The expediency of wider popularization of the figure of J. Czochralski in modern educational institutions as a comprehensively developed personality, as a model for younger generations to follow is shown.