11 November 1930: Einstein receives a patent for his fridge

On this day in 1930, Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd were awarded a patent for their revolutionary 'Einstein refrigerator'.

Albert Einstein and wife Elsa in 1930
Albert Einstein and wife Elsa in 1930
(Image credit: © Arguelles/Transcendental Graphics/Getty Images)

Albert Einstein is perhaps best-known for his theory of relativity. But he and his former student, the Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard, also came up with a design for a fridge – the so-called Einstein refrigerator – for which they were awarded patent number US1781541 A on 11 November 1930.

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

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