Guide to the Wade L. Fite Papers, 1951-2001, UA.90.F100
Arrangement
Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title
Wade L. Fite Papers
Creator
Fite, Wade L.
Collection Number
UA.90.F100
Extent
2.5 Linear Feet(2 boxes)
Date
1951-2001
Abstract
Wade L. Fite was a physics professor at the University of Pittsburgh, as well as a private sector scientist and co-founder of Extranuclear Laboratories (later renamed Extrel), a company that made science lab equipment. This collection includes many of his published works and documents from his career at several research facilities, the University of Pittsburgh and Extrel.
Language
English
.
Author
Maura Shapiro.
Sponsor
This collection was processed thanks to a grant from the Center for History of Physics, American Institute of Physics
Publisher
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Address
University of Pittsburgh Library System Archives & Special Collections Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Scope and Content Notes
This collection spans Wade Fite's academic career from student to professor, his private career working at the General Atomic division of General Dynamics and cofounding his own company, Extrel (originally Extranuclear Laboratories), as well as aspects from his personal life including correspondence between colleagues and friends. It includes an extensive collection of his published works, mostly related to particle, nuclear, and atomic physics which was his area of academic concentration. Also included are assorted lecture notes, reports from General Atomic, documents relating to his move to the University of Pittsburgh, photographs, and articles about Dr. Fite and his career at the University of Pittsburgh and Extrel.
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Maura Shapiro in February 2020 thanks to a grant from the Center for History of Physics, American Institute of Physics.
Preferred Citation
Wade L. Fite Papers, 1951-2001, UA.90.F100, University Archives, University of Pittsburgh Library System
Biography
Dr. Wade Lanford Fite was born on October 4, 1925, in Apperson, Oklahoma and grew up in Kansas. He started studying at the University of Kansas, but his education was interrupted to serve in the U.S. Army in World War II's Pacific theater. After the war, he returned to the University of Kansas to complete his undergraduate degree in Physics in 1947. He earned his Ph.D. in Physics from Harvard University with his doctoral dissertation, "Absorption of Light in Negative Ion Beams."
After graduation, Dr. Fite worked as a research physicist at Philco Corp. and as an instructor, and later lecturer, of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania, briefly collaborating with the National Bureau of Standards. In 1954, he accepted a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellowship and studied atomic collisions at the University College London. After returning to the United States, Fite established the General Atomic division of General Dynamics Corp. where he conducted research in atomic physics, focusing on collisions and upper atmosphere physics related to space science.
In 1963, Dr. Fite accepted a physics faculty position at the University of Pittsburgh as part of an effort by the university to conduct research into space technology. While working for the university, Dr. Fite cofounded Extranuclear Laboratories (later renamed Extrel), a research equipment company that started by producing mass spectrometers, but later expanded into custom scientific instruments. Dr. Fite retired from the University of Pittsburgh in 1988 and from Extrel in 1990. He died after suffering heart and kidney failure on February 22, 2002.
Access Restrictions
No restrictions.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Rebecca Fite in July 2015.
Copyright
The University of Pittsburgh holds the property rights to the material in this collection, but the copyright may still be held by the original creator/author. Researchers are therefore advised to follow the regulations set forth in the U.S. Copyright Code when publishing, quoting, or reproducing material from this collection without the consent of the creator/author or that go beyond what is allowed by fair use.
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