His primary scientific contribution lies in the development of quantum physics and the theory of gravitation, although he also contributed significantly to the fields of mechanics, theoretical optics, and physics of continuous media. In 1926, he derived the
Klein–Gordon equation. He gave his name to
Fock space, the
Fock representation and
Fock state, and developed the
Hartree–Fock method in 1930. He made many subsequent scientific contributions during the rest of his life. Fock developed the electromagnetic methods for
geophysical exploration in a book
The theory of the study of the rocks resistance by the carottage method (1933), methods called
well logging in modern literature. Fock made significant contributions to
general relativity theory, specifically for the many-body problems. Fock criticised on scientific grounds both Einstein's
general principle of relativity, as being devoid of physical substance, and the
equivalence principle, as interpreted as the equivalence of gravitation and acceleration, as having only a local validity. In Leningrad, Fock created a scientific school in theoretical physics and raised the physics education in the USSR through his books. He wrote the first textbook on quantum mechanics
Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics (1931, 1978) and a very influential monograph
The Theory of Space, Time and Gravitation (1955). Historians of science, such as
Loren Graham, see Fock as a representative and proponent of Einstein's theory of relativity within the Soviet world. At a time when most Marxist philosophers objected to relativity theory, Fock emphasized a materialistic understanding of relativity that coincided philosophically with Marxism. He was a full member (
academician) of the
USSR Academy of Sciences (1939) and a member of the
International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science. ==See also==