About Manfred von Ardenne
Manfred Baron von Ardenne (German pronunciation: [ˈmanfʁeːt fɔn aʁˈdɛn]; 20 January 1907 – 26 May 1997) was a German researcher, autodidact in applied physics, and an inventor. He took out approximately 600 patents in fields including electron microscopy, medical technology, nuclear technology, plasma physics, and radio and television technology. From 1928 to 1945, he directed his self-funded and private research laboratory Forschungslaboratorium für Elektronenphysik, where he developed and invented many techniques used in modern physics. After World War II, von Ardenne was held in Soviet custody and was one of many of the German nuclear physicists in the Soviet program of nuclear weapons, and later honored with the Stalin Prize. Upon his return to the then East Germany, he started another private engineering firm, Forschungsinstitut Manfred von Ardenne. Ardenne is seen as one of the main inventors of the television. In a school competition, he submitted models of a camera and an alarm system, for which he was awarded first place. At this time, Ardenne prematurely left the Gymnasium to pursue the development of radio engineering with the entrepreneur Siegmund Loewe, who became his mentor.
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