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The Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis for their groundbreaking work in quantum mechanics, which is paving the way for the next generation of high-performance computing.
“There is no advanced technology used today that does not rely on quantum mechanics, including mobile phones, cameras… and fibre optic cables,” stated the Nobel committee in its announcement.
The announcement was made by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences at a press conference held in Stockholm, Sweden.
“To put it mildly, it was the surprise of my life,” commented Professor John Clarke, a Cambridge, UK native who is currently based at the University of California, Berkeley.
Michel H. Devoret, born in Paris, France, is a professor at Yale University, while John M. Martinis holds a professorship at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
The three laureates will share the prize money, amounting to 11 million Swedish kronor (£872,000).
The Nobel committee recognized the seminal work conducted by the three scientists in a series of experiments during the 1980s involving electrical circuits.
The committee specifically cited “the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantisation in an electric circuit.”
Even within the often-complex field of physics, this discovery may seem esoteric.
However, its implications are profound and widespread. It underpins the electronic devices used by a majority of the population and informs the development of extremely powerful computers.
“This is something that leads to development of the quantum computer. Many people are working on quantum computing, our discovery is in many ways the basis of this,” Prof. Clarke explained to the news conference moments after receiving notification of the award.
He expressed surprise that his work, completed four decades prior, was being recognized with science’s most prestigious honor.
“I’m completely stunned. At the time we did not realise in any way that this might be the basis for a Nobel prize,” he stated.
Quantum mechanics concerns the behavior of matter at the atomic and subatomic level, dictating the actions of particles such as electrons.
Professor Clarke and his team examined instances in which these particles appeared to defy conventional physics by traversing energy barriers that were previously considered impenetrable, a phenomenon known as “tunnelling.”
Utilizing quantum “tunnelling,” the electron can effectively bypass the energy barrier.
Their research demonstrated that tunnelling could be replicated not only within the quantum realm but also in electrical circuits within the macroscopic world.
This knowledge has been utilized by scientists in the creation of modern quantum chips.
“This is wonderful news indeed, and very well deserved,” said Professor Lesley Cohen, Associate Provost in the Department of Physics at Imperial College London.
“Their work has laid the foundations for superconducting Qubits – one of the main hardware technologies for quantum technologies.”
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