Alvarez was born in San Francisco, California, on June 13, 1911, the son of a physician at the University of California. When the senior Alvarez took a position at the Mayo Clinic, the family moved to Minnesota, where young Luis was educated. In 1928, he entered the University of Chicago, where he eventually earned his bachelor of science (1932), master of science (1934), and doctoral (1936) degrees. After receiving his doctorate, Alvarez accepted a teaching position at the University of California at Berkeley. He became full professor there in 1945 and spent a total of 42 years in various positions at the institution.

Alvarez's accomplishments cover an impressive variety of topics. During World War II, for example, he developed a narrow-beam form of radar that can be used to help land a plane in foggy weather. He also invented a method for using radar in the aerial bombing of targets. In addition, he worked on atomic...