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Sir Joseph John "J. J." Thomson, OM, FRS was a British physicist.
In 1897 Thomson showed that cathode rays were composed of a previously unknown negatively charged particle, and thus he is credited with the discovery and identification of the electron; and, in a broader sense, with the discovery of the first subatomic particle. Thomson is also credited with finding the first evidence for isotopes of a stable element in 1913, as part of his exploration into the composition of canal rays. He invented the mass spectrometer.
Thomson was awarded the 1906 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery of the electron and for his work on the conduction of electricity in gases.
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