Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (March 27, 1845 – February 10, 1923) is a German mechanical engineer and physicist, who, on November 8, 1895, produces and detects electromagnetic radiation in a wavelength range known as X-rays or Röntgen rays, an achievement that earns him the first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901.

In honor of his accomplishments, in 2004 the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) will name element 111, roentgenium, a radioactive element with multiple unstable isotopes, after him.