Edwin Land
Polaroid Corporation
Inducted 1996
Edwin H. Land (1909 – 1991) was the founder of the Polaroid Corporation and one of the most celebrated inventors of the twentieth century. He was also a leader in developing technologies for military intelligence and promoting and funding civic and philanthropic causes.
In the 1920s, Land developed a polarizing film, which he introduced in 1932. This film or sheet was less costly and easier to work with than previous refractive or reflective devices. The sheet was transparent plastic with constituent materials that were oriented so that only light waves vibrating in a particular direction could pass through.
He gave the sheet the trade name Polaroid® and founded Polaroid Corporation in Cambridge, Mass., in 1937 to develop products based on it. Some of the best-known are sunglasses, window treatments, anti-reflection screens, and camera filters. In 1948, the Polaroid Corporation introduced a unique camera and special dry film for one-step photography, in which prints developed on the film almost instantly after the photograph was taken.
Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Land attended Harvard University. During the years between 1947 and 1980, he received 15 honorary doctorates as well as many other honors. He served as president of the National Academy of Sciences from 1951 to 1953, was made a foreign member of the Royal Society in 1986, and held many other fellowships and honorary memberships. He received 54 honorary awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
For many years, he was a benefactor to scientific research, public television, education innovation at Harvard and MIT, and community programs, most notably in health and the arts.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastic materials