The scientist Simon Altmann, who has died aged 98, crossed the boundaries between theoretical physics, theoretical chemistry and mathematics.
Born and brought up in Buenos Aires, Argentina, he was the son of Aarón Altmann, a travelling salesman, and his wife, Matilde (nee Branover), a secretary. Simon obtained a doctorate in chemistry, while attending as many mathematics and physics lectures as he could. In 1949, as a British Council scholar, he travelled to King’s College London, studying for a second doctorate supervised by Charles Coulson, my father, who had just been appointed professor of theoretical physics. The Coulson and Altmann families have been friends ever since.
