 At that time , the university did not offer a Doctor of Philosophy ( PhD ) program so Massey undertook a Master of Science ( MSc ) course , with both experimental and theoretical components . The former , in cooperation with Courtney Mohr , dealt with soft X @-@ ray deflection from metal surfaces ; the latter with wave mechanics . This involved translating numerous articles from German journals such as Zeitschrift für Physik , Annalen der Physik and Physikalische Zeitschrift . His external examiner was Ralph Fowler from the University of Cambridge , who was Paul Dirac 's PhD supervisor . 
