The Soviet Atomic Project

The book describes the lives of the people who gave Stalin his weapon — scientists, engineers, managers, and prisoners during the early post war years from 1945–1953. Many anecdotes and vicissitudes of life at that time in the Soviet Union accompany considerable technical information regarding the solutions to formidable problems of nuclear weapons development.

The contents should interest the reader who wants to learn more about this part of the history and politics in 20th century physics. The prevention of nuclear proliferation is a topic of current interest, and the procedure followed by the Soviet Union as described in this book will help to understand the complexities involved.
Sample Chapter(s)
Introduction

Contents: Wartime Soviet IndustryDevelopment of Nuclear Physics Before the Discovery of FissionThe Discovery of Fission of UraniumThe Soviet Union and Stalin's Terror 1937–1939The Soviet Union and Nuclear Research 1934–1942The Manhattan Project Creates Los AlamosThe Soviet Union Creates Laboratory #2Soviet Espionage and the Atomic ProjectPlayers in the Drama — Stalin, Beria, and KurchatovIndustrial Plants Move to the UralsThe Soviet Union Creates Arzamas-16Uranium and PlutoniumGerman Scientists and the Soviet Atomic ProjectSemipalatinsk Nuclear Test RangeAppendices:Nuclear MassesControlled Nuclear Chain ReactionsIsotope SeparationCharged Particle AcceleratorsSpontaneous Fission of Uranium, K A Petrzhak and G N Flerov, JETP 10, 1013, (1940)Nuclear WeaponsEncryption and DecryptionSoviet IntelligenceCritical Assemblies
Readership: Students, researchers, and general readers interested in physics and history of science.
History of Nuclear Weapons;History of 20th Century Physics0Key Features:Written by a physicist, the perspective on many events is different from other similar studiesExtensive use of declassified materials from the Soviet archivesPersonal experience in the Soviet Union authenticatics various circumstances described