Winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics | Nobel Laureates, Physics Fields, Discoveries
Winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics encyclopedia encyclopeadia britannica article
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The Nobel Prize for Physics is awarded, according to the will of Swedish inventor and industrialist Alfred Bernhard Nobel, “to those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind” in the field of physics. It is conferred by the Royal Swedish Academy of
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1901 Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen Germany discovery of X-rays 1902 Hendrik Antoon Lorentz Netherlands investigation of the influence of magnetism on radiation Pieter Zeeman Netherlands investigation of the influence of magnetism on radiation 1903 Henri Becquerel France discovery of spontaneous radioactivity Marie Curie France investigations of radiation phenomena discovered by Becquerel Pierre Curie France investigations of radiation phenomena discovered by Becquerel 1904 Lord Rayleigh U.K. discovery of argon 1905 Philipp Lenard Germany research on cathode rays 1906 Sir J.J. Thomson U.K. researches into electrical conductivity of gases 1907 A.A. Michelson U.S. spectroscopic and metrological investigations 1908 Gabriel Lippmann France photographic reproduction of colours 1909 Ferdinand Braun Germany development of wireless telegraphy Guglielmo Marconi Italy development of wireless telegraphy 1910 Johannes Diederik van der Waals Netherlands research concerning the equation of state of gases and liquids 1911 Wilhelm Wien Germany discoveries regarding laws governing heat radiation 1912 Nils Dalén Sweden invention of automatic regulators for lighting coastal beacons and light buoys 1913 Heike Kamerlingh Onnes Netherlands investigation into the properties of matter at low temperatures; production of liquid helium 1914 Max von Laue Germany discovery of diffraction of X-rays by crystals 1915 Sir Lawrence Bragg U.K. analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays Sir William Bragg U.K. analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays 1917 Charles Glover Barkla U.K. discovery of characteristic X-radiation of elements 1918 Max Planck Germany discovery of the elemental quanta 1919 Johannes Stark Germany discovery of the Doppler effect in positive ion rays and division of spectral lines in an electric field 1920 Charles Édouard Guillaume Switzerland discovery of anomalies in alloys 1921 Albert Einstein Switzerland work in theoretical physics 1922 Niels Bohr Denmark investigation of atomic structure and radiation 1923 Robert Andrews Millikan U.S. work on elementary electric charge and the photoelectric effect 1924 Karl Manne Georg Siegbahn Sweden work in X-ray spectroscopy 1925 James Franck Germany discovery of the laws governing the impact of an electron upon an atom Gustav Hertz Germany discovery of the laws governing the impact of an electron upon an atom 1926 Jean Perrin France work on the discontinuous structure of matter 1927 Arthur Holly Compton U.S. discovery of wavelength change in diffused X-rays C.T.R. Wilson U.K. method of making visible the paths of electrically charged particles 1928 Sir Owen Willans Richardson U.K. work on electron emission by hot metals 1929 Louis de Broglie France discovery of the wave nature of electrons 1930 Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman India work on light diffusion; discovery of the Raman effect 1932 Werner Heisenberg Germany creation of quantum mechanics 1933 P.A.M. Dirac U.K. introduction of wave equations in quantum mechanics Erwin Schrödinger Austria introduction of wave equations in quantum mechanics 1935 Sir James Chadwick U.K. discovery of the neutron 1936 Carl David Anderson U.S. discovery of the positron Victor Francis Hess Austria discovery of cosmic radiation 1937 Clinton Joseph Davisson U.S. experimental demonstration of the interference phenomenon in crystals irradiated by electrons Sir George Paget Thomson U.K. experimental demonstration of the interference phenomenon in crystals irradiated by electrons 1938 Enrico Fermi Italy disclosure of artificial radioactive elements produced by neutron irradiation 1939 Ernest Orlando Lawrence U.S. invention of the cyclotron 1943 Otto Stern U.S. discovery of the magnetic moment of the proton 1944 Isidor Isaac Rabi U.S. resonance method for registration of various properties of atomic nuclei 1945 Wolfgang Pauli Austria discovery of the exclusion principle of electrons 1946 Percy Williams Bridgman U.S. discoveries in the domain of high-pressure physics 1947 Sir Edward Victor Appleton U.K. discovery of the Appleton layer in the upper atmosphere 1948 Patrick M.S. Blackett U.K. discoveries in the domain of nuclear physics and cosmic radiation 1949 Yukawa Hideki Japan prediction of the existence of mesons 1950 Cecil Frank Powell U.K. photographic method of studying nuclear processes; discoveries concerning mesons 1951 Sir John Douglas Cockcroft U.K. work on transmutation of atomic nuclei by accelerated particles Ernest Thomas Sinton Walton Ireland work on transmutation of atomic nuclei by accelerated particles 1952 Felix Bloch U.S. discovery of nuclear magnetic resonance in solids E.M. Purcell U.S. discovery of nuclear magnetic resonance in solids 1953 Frits Zernike Netherlands method of phase-contrast microscopy 1954 Max Born U.K. statistical studies of atomic wave functions Walther Bothe West Germany invention of the coincidence method 1955 Polykarp Kusch U.S. measurement of the magnetic moment of the electron Willis Eugene Lamb, Jr. U.S. discoveries in the hydrogen spectrum 1956 John Bardeen U.S. investigations on semiconductors and invention of the transistor Walter H. Brattain U.S. investigations on semiconductors and invention of the transistor William B. Shockley U.S. investigations on semiconductors and invention of the transistor 1957 Tsung-Dao Lee China discovery of violations of the principle of parity Chen Ning Yang China discovery of violations of the principle of parity 1958 Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov U.S.S.R. discovery and interpretation of the Cherenkov effect Ilya Mikhaylovich Frank U.S.S.R. discovery and interpretation of the Cherenkov effect Igor Yevgenyevich Tamm U.S.S.R. discovery and interpretation of the Cherenkov effect 1959 Owen Chamberlain U.S. confirmation of the existence of the antiproton Emilio Segrè U.S. confirmation of the existence of the antiproton 1960 Donald A. Glaser U.S. development of the bubble chamber 1961 Robert Hofstadter U.S. determination of the shape and size of atomic nucleons Rudolf Ludwig Mössbauer West Germany discovery of the Mössbauer effect 1962 Lev Davidovich Landau U.S.S.R. contributions to the understanding of condensed states of matter 1963 J. Hans D. Jensen West Germany development of the shell model theory of the structure of atomic nuclei Maria Goeppert Mayer U.S. development of the shell model theory of the structure of atomic nuclei Eugene Paul Wigner U.S. principles governing interaction of protons and neutrons in the nucleus 1964 Nikolay Gennadiyevich Basov U.S.S.R. work in quantum electronics leading to construction of instruments based on maser-laser principles Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Prokhorov U.S.S.R. work in quantum electronics leading to construction of instruments based on maser-laser principles Charles Hard Townes U.S. work in quantum electronics leading to construction of instruments based on maser-laser principles 1965 Richard P. Feynman U.S. basic principles of quantum electrodynamics Julian Seymour Schwinger U.S. basic principles of quantum electrodynamics Tomonaga Shin'ichiro Japan basic principles of quantum electrodynamics 1966 Alfred Kastler France discovery of optical methods for studying Hertzian resonances in atoms 1967 Hans Albrecht Bethe U.S. discoveries concerning the energy production of stars 1968 Luis W. Alvarez U.S. work with elementary particles, discovery of resonance states 1969 Murray Gell-Mann U.S. classification of elementary particles and their interactions 1970 Hannes Alfvén Sweden work in magnetohydrodynamics and in antiferromagnetism and ferrimagnetism Louis-Eugène-Félix Néel France work in magnetohydrodynamics and in antiferromagnetism and ferrimagnetism 1971 Dennis Gabor U.K. invention of holography 1972 John Bardeen U.S. development of the theory of superconductivity Leon N. Cooper U.S. development of the theory of superconductivity John Robert Schrieffer U.S. development of the theory of superconductivity 1973 Leo Esaki Japan tunneling in semiconductors and superconductors Ivar Giaever U.S. tunneling in semiconductors and superconductors Brian D. Josephson U.K. tunneling in semiconductors and superconductors 1974 Antony Hewish U.K. work in radio astronomy Sir Martin Ryle U.K. work in radio astronomy 1975 Aage N. Bohr Denmark work on the atomic nucleus that paved the way for nuclear fusion Ben R. Mottelson Denmark work on the atomic nucleus that paved the way for nuclear fusion James Rainwater U.S. work on the atomic nucleus that paved the way for nuclear fusion 1976 Burton Richter U.S. discovery of a new class of elementary particles (psi, or J) Samuel C.C. Ting U.S. discovery of a new class of elementary particles (psi, or J) 1977 Philip W. Anderson U.S. contributions to understanding the behaviour of electrons in magnetic, noncrystalline solids Sir Nevill F. Mott U.K. contributions to understanding the behaviour of electrons in magnetic, noncrystalline solids John H. Van Vleck U.S. contributions to understanding the behaviour of electrons in magnetic, noncrystalline solids 1978 Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa U.S.S.R. invention and application of a helium liquefier Arno Penzias U.S. discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation, providing support for the big-bang theory Robert Woodrow Wilson U.S. discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation, providing support for the big-bang theory 1979 Sheldon Lee Glashow U.S. unification of electromagnetism and the weak interactions of subatomic particles Abdus Salam Pakistan unification of electromagnetism and the weak interactions of subatomic particles Steven Weinberg U.S. unification of electromagnetism and the weak interactions of subatomic particles 1980 James Watson Cronin U.S. demonstration of simultaneous violation of both charge-conjugation and parity-inversion symmetries Val Logsdon Fitch U.S. demonstration of simultaneous violation of both charge-conjugation and parity-inversion symmetries 1981 Nicolaas Bloembergen U.S. applications of lasers in spectroscopy Arthur Leonard Schawlow U.S. applications of lasers in spectroscopy Kai Manne Börje Siegbahn Sweden electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis 1982 Kenneth Geddes Wilson U.S. analysis of continuous phase transitions 1983 Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar U.S. contributions to understanding the evolution and devolution of stars William A. Fowler U.S. contributions to understanding the evolution and devolution of stars 1984 Simon van der Meer Netherlands discovery of subatomic particles W and Z, which supports the electroweak theory Carlo Rubbia Italy discovery of subatomic particles W and Z, which supports the electroweak theory 1985 Klaus von Klitzing West Germany discovery of the quantized Hall effect, permitting exact measurements of electrical resistance 1986 Gerd Binnig West Germany development of electron microscopes Heinrich Rohrer Switzerland development of electron microscopes Ernst Ruska West Germany development of electron microscopes 1987 J. Georg Bednorz West Germany discovery of new superconducting materials Karl Alex Müller Switzerland discovery of new superconducting materials 1988 Leon Max Lederman U.S. research in subatomic particles Melvin Schwartz U.S. research in subatomic particles Jack Steinberger U.S. research in subatomic particles 1989 Hans Georg Dehmelt U.S. development of methods to isolate atoms and subatomic particles for study Wolfgang Paul West Germany development of methods to isolate atoms and subatomic particles for study Norman Foster Ramsey U.S. development of the atomic clock 1990 Jerome Isaac Friedman U.S. discovery of quarks Henry Way Kendall U.S. discovery of quarks Richard E. Taylor Canada discovery of quarks 1991 Pierre-Gilles de Gennes France discovery of general rules for behaviour of molecules 1992 Georges Charpak France invention of a detector that traces subatomic particles 1993 Russell Alan Hulse U.S. identifying binary pulsars Joseph H. Taylor, Jr. U.S. identifying binary pulsars 1994 Bertram N. Brockhouse Canada development of neutron-scattering techniques Clifford G. Shull U.S. development of neutron-scattering techniques 1995 Martin Lewis Perl U.S. discovery of the tau subatomic particle Frederick Reines U.S. discovery of the neutrino 1996 David M. Lee U.S. discovery of superfluidity in the isotope helium-3 Douglas D. Osheroff U.S. discovery of superfluidity in the isotope helium-3 Robert C. Richardson U.S. discovery of superfluidity in the isotope helium-3 1997 Steven Chu U.S. process of trapping atoms with laser cooling Claude Cohen-Tannoudji France process of trapping atoms with laser cooling William D. Phillips U.S. process of trapping atoms with laser cooling 1998 Robert B. Laughlin U.S. discovery of the fractional quantum Hall effect Horst L. Störmer U.S. discovery of the fractional quantum Hall effect Daniel C. Tsui U.S. discovery of the fractional quantum Hall effect 1999 Gerardus 't Hooft Netherlands study of the quantum structure of electroweak interactions Martinus J.G. Veltman Netherlands study of the quantum structure of electroweak interactions 2000 Zhores I. Alferov Russia development of fast semiconductors for use in microelectronics Jack S. Kilby U.S. development of the integrated circuit (microchip) Herbert Kroemer Germany development of fast semiconductors for use in microelectronics 2001 Eric A. Cornell U.S. achievement of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases of alkali atoms; early fundamental studies of the properties of the condensates Wolfgang Ketterle Germany achievement of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases of alkali atoms; early fundamental studies of the properties of the condensates Carl E. Wieman U.S. achievement of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases of alkali atoms; early fundamental studies of the properties of the condensates 2002 Raymond Davis, Jr. U.S. detection of neutrinos Riccardo Giacconi U.S. seminal discoveries of cosmic sources of X-rays Koshiba Masatoshi Japan detection of neutrinos 2003 Alexei A. Abrikosov U.S. discoveries regarding superconductivity and superfluidity at very low temperatures Vitaly L. Ginzburg Russia discoveries regarding superconductivity and superfluidity at very low temperatures Anthony J. Leggett U.S. discoveries regarding superconductivity and superfluidity at very low temperatures 2004 David J. Gross U.S. discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction H. David Politzer U.S. discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction Frank Wilczek U.S. discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction 2005 Roy J. Glauber U.S. contributions to the field of optics John L. Hall U.S. contributions to the development of laser spectroscopy Theodor W. Hänsch Germany contributions to the development of laser spectroscopy 2006 John C. Mather U.S. discovery of the blackbody form and anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background radiation George F. Smoot U.S. discovery of the blackbody form and anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background radiation 2007 Albert Fert France discovery of giant magnetoresistance Peter Grünberg Germany discovery of giant magnetoresistance 2008 Kobayashi Makoto Japan discovery of the origin of the broken symmetry which predicts the existence of at least three families of quarks in nature Maskawa Toshihide Japan discovery of the origin of the broken symmetry which predicts the existence of at least three families of quarks in nature Yoichiro Nambu U.S. discovery of the mechanism of spontaneous broken symmetry in subatomic physics 2009 Willard Boyle Canada/U.S. invention of the CCD sensor, an imaging semiconductor circuit Charles Kao U.K./U.S. achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibres for optical communication George E. Smith U.S. invention of the CCD sensor, an imaging semiconductor circuit 2010 Andre Geim Netherlands experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene Konstantin Novoselov Russia/U.K. experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene 2011 Saul Perlmutter U.S. discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe through observations of distant supernovae Brian P. Schmidt U.S./Australia discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe through observations of distant supernovae Adam G. Riess U.S. discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe through observations of distant supernovae 2012 Serge Haroche France development of methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems David J. Wineland U.S. development of methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems 2013 François Englert Belgium theoretical discovery of a mechanism that contributes to the understanding of the origin of mass of subatomic particles 2015 Kajita Takaaki Japan discovery of neutrino oscillations, which show that neutrinos have mass Arthur B. McDonald Canada discovery of neutrino oscillations, which show that neutrinos have mass 2016 David Thouless U.K. theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter Duncan Haldane U.K. theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter Michael Kosterlitz U.K. theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter 2017 Barry C. Barish U.S. decisive contributions to the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory detector and the observation of gravitational waves Kip S. Thorne U.S. decisive contributions to the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory detector and the observation of gravitational waves Rainer Weiss U.S. decisive contributions to the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory detector and the observation of gravitational waves 2018 Arthur Ashkin U.S. invention of optical tweezers and their application to biological systems Gérard Mourou France invention of a method of generating high-intensity ultra-short optical pulses Donna Strickland Canada invention of a method of generating high-intensity ultra-short optical pulses 2019 James Peebles Canada/U.S. theoretical discoveries in physical cosmology Michel Mayor Switzerland discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star Didier Queloz Switzerland discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star 2020 Reinhard Genzel Germany discovery of a supermassive compact object at the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy Andrea Ghez U.S. discovery of a supermassive compact object at the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy Roger Penrose U.K. discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity 2021 Klaus Hasselmann Germany development of the foundation for human knowledge of the Earth's climate and how humanity influences it Manabe Syukuro Japan/U.S. development of the foundation for human knowledge of the Earth's climate and how humanity influences it Giorgio Parisi Italy discovery of the interplay of disorder and fluctuations in physical systems from atomic to planetary scales 2022 Alain Aspect France experiments with quantum entanglement that laid the foundation for a new era of quantum technology John F. Clauser U.S. experiments with quantum entanglement that laid the foundation for a new era of quantum technology Anton Zeilinger Austria experiments with quantum entanglement that laid the foundation for a new era of quantum technology 2023 Pierre Agostini France development of experimental methods that generate attosecond pulses of light for the study of electron dynamics in matter Ferenc Krausz Hungary development of experimental methods that generate attosecond pulses of light for the study of electron dynamics in matter