Roentgen or Röntgen, Wilhelm Conrad (both: rent'gin, rŭnt'–, Ger. vil'helm kôn'rät rönt'gun) [key], 1845–1923, German physicist. His notable research in many fields of physics, especially thermology, mechanics, and electricity, has been overshadowed by his discovery (1895) of a short-wave ray, the Roentgen ray, or X ray, for which he received the first Nobel Prize in Physics (1901). He taught at several German universities, including those at Würzburg (1888–99) and Munich (1899–1920).
