Richard S. Stein
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Inducted 1994
Richard S. Stein (1925 – 2021) was an American chemist who has studied the relationship between polymer structure and properties over a long career. He studied as an undergraduate at the (then) Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn in the famous laboratory of the late Herman Marx. There, he constructed one of the first apparatus for studying the angular dependence of light scattering from a polymer solution to make one of the first measurements of a polymer molecule’s gyration radius. He received his B.S. in chemistry (magna cum laude) from the Polytechnic Institute in 1945, his M.A. in physical chemistry from Princeton University in 1948, and his Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Princeton in 1949.
Stein joined the Chemistry Department of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1950 as an assistant professor. He developed and taught the first graduate courses in quantum and statistical mechanics, chemical kinetics, and polymer physical chemistry. Over 150 students have received doctoral degrees under Stein’s direction, many of whom have assumed leading positions in industry and academia. The theory and experimental techniques for his work on using light scattering to study the morphology of solid polymers are now widely used in both industrial and academic laboratories.
Stein also combined the analytical techniques of x-ray diffraction, birefringence, infrared spectroscopy, and small-angle light scattering to study solid polymers’ relaxation mechanisms, developing a science known as “rheo-optics.” He pioneered the use of synchrotron radiation for polymer studies and neutron reflectivity to study surfaces and interfaces. Although he retired from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1992, he was rehired for “one-third time.” He remained active in international education activities, including developing computer-based courses in Electro-Optical Properties of Polymers and related subjects.
Stein is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1992, Stein received a Doctorate of Science from the University of Massachusetts, Honoris Causa.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastic materials, Education