England, France, US physicists win Nobel for key research in quantum tunnelling

Stockholm, Oct 7: Three physicists from England, France and U.S.A won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their research into quantum mechanical tunneling, on Tuesday.

The winners, John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis, will be formally awarded the prize at a ceremony on December 10, the anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobel's death.

Olle Eriksson, Chair of the Nobel Committee for Physics, shared his views on this year’s decision, saying, “It is wonderful to be able to celebrate the way that century-old quantum mechanics continually offers new surprises. It is also enormously useful, as quantum mechanics is the foundation of all digital technology."

While emphasising the significance of the award to the three scientists and their discovery, Royal Swedish Academy in a press release noted, “This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics has provided opportunities for developing the next generation of quantum technology, including quantum cryptography, quantum computers, and quantum sensors”. 

The physics honour has been awarded 118 times to 226 Nobel laureates between 1901 and 2024.

Last year, artificial intelligence pioneers John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton won the physics prize for helping lay the foundations of machine learning.

Earlier on Monday, Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Dr. Shimon Sakaguchi won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for discoveries explaining how the immune system distinguishes between germs and the body’s own cells.

Nobel announcements continue with the Chemistry Prize on Wednesday and Literature on Thursday.

The Nobel Peace Prize for the year will be announced on Friday, and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics on October 13.

The prizes carry immense prestige and a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor (nearly USD 1.2 million).

PTI