Sampson, Henry T. Jr.

Impact on the world

His gamma-electric cell generates electricity directly from gamma radiation without a heat cycle, with applications in nuclear reactor auxiliary power and radiation detection; became the first African-American to earn a PhD in nuclear engineering in the U.S. Note: some popular sources have inaccurately credited Sampson as 'inventing the cell phone' — this is a documented misattribution; his actual invention was the gamma-electric cell, used in satellite and reactor power applications.

Life & background

A chemical and nuclear engineer, Sampson became the first African-American to earn a PhD in nuclear engineering in the United States. He co-invented the gamma-electric cell in 1971, a device converting nuclear radiation directly into electricity, and worked extensively on solid rocket motor propellant systems at the U.S. Naval Weapons Center and the Aerospace Corporation. Separately, he was also a noted film historian, authoring multiple books chronicling early Black cinema and show business history.

Sources

1. African American Registry; Bowling Green Daily News; Math.Buffalo.edu (Physicists of the African Diaspora)