David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and J. Michael Kosterlitz (left to right) will share the 2016 Nobel Prize in physics. The award recognizes their theoretical discoveries on exotic states of matter. Their work was based on the mathematics of topology.
From left: ©Trinity Hall, Cambridge, Photographer Kiloton Howard; Denise Applewhite/Office of Communications/Princeton University; Johanna Lassy/Aalto University
Three physicists won the 2016 Nobel Prize in physics for discoveries about exotic states of matter. Their work was theoretical. That means it was based on mathematical calculations, not on tests in a lab or on observations in nature.
On October 4, the Nobel committee in Stockholm, Sweden announced the three winners. David Thouless is at the University of Washington in Seattle. J. Michael Kosterlitz works at Brown University in Providence, R.I. Duncan Haldane is at Princeton University in New Jersey.
Their work is “fairly abstract,” notes Princeton’s M. Zahid Hasan. “It’s not like finding a new particle,” this physicist explains. “It’s about how ordinary matter can behave in extraordinary ways.” Clearly, he says, this award is “deserving” for the trio’s important work.
All three worked in a branch of mathematics that deals with the study of shapes. It is known as topology. Their discoveries spurred interest in creating what have come to be called topological materials.
Potential uses for such materials include quantum computing and new types of computer hard drives.
Thinking about bread
In topology, different shapes are distinguished by abrupt transitions. Consider the holes found in some breads. A loaf of bread has no holes in it. To create a bagel shape, one needs to cut out a hole. A pretzel with two holes can be made from a looped cord of bread. But to morph from the bread loaf shape into a bagel or looped pretzel, a baker needs to introduce a hole or two. That makes each shape, from a topological point of view, quite different.
One of these shapes cannot be gradually turned into the other without cutting parts. But anything with the same basic shape — one hole, two holes or no holes — will be twins. That’s true, at least, from a topological point of view. So as hard as it may be to imagine, by this way of reasoning a bagel and a coffee cup are twins. After all, each has a single hole: The bagel’s is in the middle and the coffee cup’s is in its handle.
This diagram illustrates a change known as a topological phase transition. Swirling vortices (arrows) form in a thin layer of material and are locked into pairs at low temperatures (left). As the temperature rises, the vortices suddenly split, free to go off on their own .
©Johan Jarnestad/The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
Using concepts from this type of math, the researchers worked to probe extreme states of matter. Most people know the basic states: solid, liquid, gas and plasma. With a phase change, a material may morph from one to another of these. But under extreme conditions — such as temperatures near absolute zero — materials can behave oddly. Now the physics of quantum mechanics takes over. Superconductors are one such quantum state. Here, electricity flows with no resistance.
Research by this year’s Nobel winners predicted new phenomena that might come to life in such a quantum world. And indeed, such oddities eventually did show up.
In recent years, topological materials have become one of the hottest topics in physics. One widely studied example: topological insulators. These are materials that can serve simultaneously as both electrical insulators — blocking the flow of a current — and conductors of an electrical current.
Suddenly, people are realizing that topological effects “are just a tremendously rich subject,” said Haldane. The Princeton-based winner offered this assessment by phone during the announcement of his prize.
He and his co-winners “certainly were the first people to emphasize the role of topology in physical phenomena,” says Laurens Molenkamp. He’s an experimental physicist. He works at the University of Würzburg in Germany. The scientists named today, he says, “certainly deserve a Nobel Prize.”
What they did
A two-dimensional material has length and width but no height. Thouless and Kosterlitz made discoveries about phase changes in such 2-D materials. Everyone is familiar with certain phase changes. Ice melting into water is one of the best known. Exotic quantum materials also exhibit phase changes, where their properties suddenly shift. But theirs are far less easy to imagine than the change from ice to water.
For instance, this pair of scientists discovered a new phase change that occurs at very low temperatures. Named for them, this Kosterlitz-Thouless transition occurs with the behavior of tornado-like vortices of swirling electrons. Those swirls pair up and are locked together. If the temperature warms, however, these vortices will suddenly separate. Afterward, each will travel on its own. Eventually, experimental scientists witnessed this happening in very thin films of superfluid helium and with superconductors.
In 1983, Thouless used topology to explain another mysterious phenomenon that had been seen in tests. It is known as the quantum Hall effect. The effect develops within a thin layer of electrically conducting material. It was initially seen only when the temperature was extremely cold and a high magnetic field was present. Under such conditions, the electrical conductivity of a layer would change. But it didn’t happen gradually. Instead, the changes took place in regular jumps. The move from one phase to another occurred at integer multiples. As the magnetic field changed, for example, the conductivity changed. But instead of shifting gradually, it happened in discrete jumps, perhaps changing to double or triple its initial value.
In the branch of mathematics known as topology, a mug and a bagel are equivalent. That is because they both have one hole. That lets one shape be morphed into another without breaking it apart or pasting it back together. Wikimedia Commons
Thouless showed how this effect was related to topology. Consider the bread loaf, bagel and pretzel again. The loaf has no hole, the bagel has one and the slightly looped pretzel has two. Their number of holes varies by a whole number. It can’t vary by a fraction. There is no bread with one-and-a-half holes, or two-and-a-third holes. So any change in the number of holes can vary only in integer leaps — just as the conductivity changes in the quantum Hall effect. (In 1988, Haldane showed that a similar effect can occur even in the absence of a magnetic field.)
Haldane also predicted a new behavior in chains of atoms.
Atoms in the chain each have a quantum property. Scientists refer to this as spin. It makes the chains behave like tiny magnets. In this case, the spins can occur as an integer or a half integer. A chain with integer spin will behave differently than one with half-integer spin, Haldane showed.
Why scientists care about these odd traits
The three new Nobelists “laid a foundation for the way that we think about materials and matter,” says Charles Kane. He’s a physicist at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Their findings have profound implications, he says. The effects can be seen “from our understanding of the phenomenon of superconductivity to our understanding of the electronic structure of materials.”
Their work also has inspired new topological materials. For instance, those topological insulators may carry current on their surface, while barring the flow of electricity inside. Or they might prevent light from flowing through a piece of etched glass but allow that light to flow well along its surface.
The research behind such materials has “combined beautiful mathematical and profound physics insights,” said Thors Hans Hansson during the Nobel announcement. Hansson is a physicist at Stockholm University. He is also a member of the Nobel committee for physics. Importantly, he noted, the winners’ mathematical predictions were later “confirmed by experiment.”
The three men will share 8 million Swedish kronor (or about $934,000). But it won’t be divided equally. At a December 10 ceremony in Stockholm, Thouless will receive half of the total. Kosterlitz and Haldane will split the rest.
Their prize is named for Alfred Nobel. Best known as the inventor of dynamite, he was a wealthy man when he died on December 10, 1896. In his will, Nobel left much of his fortune to create prizes to those who have done their best for humanity in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace.
Note: This story has been revised to more accurately describe the quantum effects of spin in chains of atoms.
Power Words
(for more about Power Words, click here)
absolute zero The coldest possible temperature, also known as 0 kelvin. It is equal to minus 273.15 degrees Celsius (minus 459.67 degrees Fahrenheit).
abstract Something that exists as an idea or thought but not concrete or tangible (touchable) in the real world. Beauty, love and memory are abstractions; cars, trees and water are concrete and tangible.
atom The basic unit of a chemical element. Atoms are made up of a dense nucleus that contains positively charged protons and neutrally charged neutrons. The nucleus is orbited by a cloud of negatively charged electrons.
bagel A dense bread roll made in the shape of a fat ring. Bakers first boil the dough, then bake it.
chemistry The field of science that deals with the composition, structure and properties of substances and how they interact with one another. Chemists use this knowledge to study unfamiliar substances, to reproduce large quantities of useful substances or to design and create new and useful substances. (about compounds) The term is used to refer to the recipe of a compound, the way it’s produced or some of its properties.
conductor (in physics and engineering) A material through which an electrical current can flow.
current A fluid body — such as of water or air — that moves in a recognizable direction. (in electricity) The flow of electricity or the amount of electricity moving through some point over a particular period of time.
dynamite A type of explosive.
electrical conductivity The ability of some substance (such as water or metals) to transport an electrical charge or current.
electricity A flow of charge, usually from the movement of negatively charged particles, called electrons.
electron A negatively charged particle, usually found orbiting the outer regions of an atom; also, the carrier of electricity within solids.
field An area of study, as in: Her field of research was biology. Also a term to describe a real-world environment in which some research is conducted, such as at sea, in a forest, on a mountaintop or on a city street. It is the opposite of an artificial setting, such as a research laboratory. (in physics) A region in space where certain physical effects operate, such as magnetism (created by a magnetic field), gravity (by a gravitational field) or mass (by a Higgs field).
hard drive A device that reads and writes — and hence can store — digital data onto a rigid magnetic disk.
helium An inert gas that is the lightest member of the noble gas series. Helium can become a solid at -458 degrees Fahrenheit (-272 degrees Celsius).
insight The ability to gain an accurate and deep understanding of a situation just by thinking about it, instead of working out a solution through experimentation.
insulator A substance or device that does not readily conduct electricity.
integer A whole (not fractional) number. One, 7, 21 and 381 are all examples of integers. Two-thirds is not.
magnet A material that usually contains iron and whose atoms are arranged so they attract certain metals.
magnetic field An area of influence created by certain materials, called magnets, or by the movement of electric charges.
matter Something which occupies space and has mass. Anything with matter will weigh something on Earth.
mechanics The study of how things move.
particle A minute amount of something.
phenomenon Something that is surprising or unusual.
physical (adj.) A term for things that exist in the real world, as opposed to in memories or the imagination. It can also refer to properties of materials that are due to their size and non-chemical interactions (such as when one block slams with force into another).
physics The scientific study of the nature and properties of matter and energy. Classical physics is an explanation of the nature and properties of matter and energy that relies on descriptions such as Newton’s laws of motion. Quantum physics, a field of study which emerged later, is a more accurate way of explaining the motions and behavior of matter. A scientist who works in that field is known as a physicist.
plasma (in chemistry and physics) A gaseous state of matter in which electrons separate from the atom. A plasma includes both positively and negatively charged particles.
poles (in physics and electrical engineering) The ends of a magnet.
quantum (pl. quanta) A term that refers to the smallest amount of anything, especially of energy or subatomic mass.
quantum mechanics A branch of physics dealing with the behavior of matter on the scale of atoms or subatomic particles.
resistance (in physics) Something that keeps a physical material (such as a block of wood, flow of water or air) from moving freely, usually because it provides friction to impede its motion.
subatomic Anything smaller than an atom, which is the smallest bit of matter that has all the properties of whatever chemical element it is (like hydrogen, iron or calcium).
superconductor Materials that have no resistance to the flow of electricity, typically only when they are cooled below a certain temperature. Superconductors also repel all magnetic fields, which allows them to float in the air when they are placed inside a strong magnetic field.
theoretical An adjective for an analysis or assessment of something that based on pre-existing knowledge of how things behave. It is not based on experimental trials. Theoretical research tends to use math — usually performed by computers — to predict how or what will occur for some specified series of conditions. Experimental testing or observations of natural systems will then be needed to confirm what had been predicted.
topology (in math) The study of the properties of shapes and their relationships to each other. Shapes are related when they have similar properties even after deformation (such as bending, stretching, shrinking). They will not be similar if cut, torn or have had some pieces glued (or otherwise patched) onto it.
transition The boundary where one thing (paragraphs, ecosystems, life stage, state of matter) changes into another. Some transitions are sharp or abrupt. Others slowly or gradually morph from one condition or environment to another.
vortex (plural: vortices) A swirling whirlpool of some liquid or gas. Tornadoes are vortices, and so are the tornado-like swirls inside a glass of tea that’s been stirred with a spoon. Smoke rings are donut-shaped vortices.
Readability Score: 8.3
Citation
2016 Nobel Prize in Physics: David J. Thouless, F. Duncan M. Haldane, J. Michael Kosterlitz. Nobelprize.org. October 4, 2016.
I have checked your blog and i have found some
duplicate content, that’s why you don’t rank high in google’s search results, but there is a tool
that can help you to create 100% unique articles,
search for: Boorfe’s tips unlimited content
Thank you so much for providing individuals with an extremely memorable opportunity to read in detail from this website. It is often so good plus jam-packed with a lot of fun for me personally and my office co-workers to visit your blog the equivalent of 3 times in 7 days to read the fresh guidance you will have. And indeed, we’re actually fulfilled with all the cool inspiring ideas you give. Certain 2 ideas on this page are surely the very best we’ve ever had.
That is the proper blog for anybody who needs to search out out about this topic. You realize a lot its nearly onerous to argue with you (not that I actually would need匟aHa). You positively put a brand new spin on a subject thats been written about for years. Great stuff, simply nice!
I want to express appreciation to you just for rescuing me from this type of situation. Just after searching throughout the internet and finding ways which were not productive, I assumed my entire life was gone. Living without the presence of approaches to the problems you have fixed all through your entire article is a serious case, as well as the kind which might have negatively affected my career if I had not come across your web page. The talents and kindness in maneuvering all the details was priceless. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I hadn’t discovered such a step like this. I can also at this time look ahead to my future. Thanks for your time so much for your reliable and effective guide. I will not be reluctant to endorse your web sites to any person who would like guide about this issue.
Thank you a lot for giving everyone an extraordinarily nice chance to read from this blog. It is always so good and as well , stuffed with amusement for me and my office acquaintances to search the blog at the least 3 times in one week to study the fresh guides you will have. And of course, I’m usually pleased for the breathtaking concepts you serve. Some 2 tips on this page are honestly the most effective we’ve ever had.
I must show some thanks to this writer for rescuing me from this problem. Because of checking throughout the world wide web and seeing methods which were not pleasant, I believed my entire life was done. Existing without the presence of strategies to the difficulties you have resolved by means of your entire guide is a critical case, as well as the ones that might have badly affected my career if I had not come across your website. Your own training and kindness in maneuvering a lot of things was precious. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I hadn’t discovered such a stuff like this. It’s possible to at this moment relish my future. Thanks for your time very much for this skilled and sensible help. I will not hesitate to refer the sites to any individual who should have counselling on this matter.
Thanks a lot for providing individuals with remarkably breathtaking possiblity to discover important secrets from this web site. It really is so superb and also full of a good time for me personally and my office co-workers to visit your site the equivalent of 3 times weekly to read the newest items you will have. And of course, I’m so actually pleased considering the exceptional pointers served by you. Certain 1 facts in this post are rather the most beneficial I’ve had.
I am only commenting to let you understand what a superb experience my wife’s girl enjoyed using yuor web blog. She came to find so many things, which included what it’s like to possess a wonderful coaching style to have many people completely comprehend selected tricky issues. You undoubtedly exceeded my expected results. Thank you for offering those necessary, trusted, explanatory and as well as easy tips about the topic to Sandra.
I wanted to construct a quick word to express gratitude to you for all the superb hints you are placing on this site. My extensive internet investigation has now been compensated with reputable facts to share with my two friends. I would point out that we readers actually are extremely endowed to be in a fabulous community with many lovely people with interesting tips. I feel extremely fortunate to have encountered your web page and look forward to some more enjoyable minutes reading here. Thanks once more for a lot of things.
I wanted to compose a simple comment in order to express gratitude to you for all the marvelous ways you are writing on this site. My long internet search has at the end of the day been paid with high-quality content to share with my companions. I ‘d mention that most of us site visitors are very lucky to dwell in a wonderful website with so many perfect people with great methods. I feel rather privileged to have seen your web site and look forward to some more thrilling moments reading here. Thank you once again for a lot of things.
Thanks so much for providing individuals with an exceptionally superb possiblity to read articles and blog posts from this site. It really is very superb plus full of a great time for me personally and my office fellow workers to visit your blog the equivalent of thrice every week to learn the newest things you have got. And lastly, I am also certainly pleased with your fantastic points served by you. Certain 3 areas in this post are honestly the most impressive we have all had.
I am just writing to let you know what a nice discovery my wife’s child undergone viewing your webblog. She learned too many issues, including how it is like to possess an excellent teaching mood to have others clearly learn a variety of complex subject matter. You undoubtedly surpassed our own expectations. Many thanks for presenting those interesting, dependable, revealing and also fun thoughts on this topic to Julie.
My spouse and i got happy that Chris could carry out his survey out of the precious recommendations he discovered out of the web site. It is now and again perplexing just to be freely giving guidelines that people today could have been trying to sell. We really acknowledge we need the writer to give thanks to for that. Most of the illustrations you made, the easy website menu, the relationships your site help to foster – it’s mostly extraordinary, and it’s really aiding our son in addition to us believe that that article is thrilling, and that is exceptionally indispensable. Thank you for the whole lot!
I wish to convey my love for your generosity for individuals that need assistance with your area. Your very own commitment to getting the message all through came to be unbelievably insightful and has helped regular people much like me to reach their desired goals. Your warm and helpful suggestions implies so much to me and still more to my colleagues. Regards; from everyone of us.
I wanted to type a brief word to be able to say thanks to you for those fabulous ways you are writing at this site. My incredibly long internet look up has at the end of the day been paid with awesome content to share with my pals. I would repeat that most of us site visitors are really fortunate to exist in a notable network with very many perfect individuals with great techniques. I feel truly fortunate to have seen the webpage and look forward to some more fabulous moments reading here. Thanks again for a lot of things.
My husband and i have been quite comfortable when Raymond could deal with his research out of the precious recommendations he got from your site. It’s not at all simplistic to just possibly be releasing helpful tips which often many people may have been trying to sell. We really see we need the writer to thank for that. The explanations you’ve made, the straightforward web site navigation, the relationships you can aid to instill – it is mostly excellent, and it is helping our son and us imagine that the subject is amusing, which is certainly exceptionally vital. Thanks for everything!
There is noticeably a bundle to learn about this. I assume you made sure nice points in features also.
I simply had to thank you so much all over again. I’m not certain the things that I would’ve gone through in the absence of the suggestions discussed by you directly on such industry. It actually was a real difficult matter in my opinion, but discovering the well-written way you managed that forced me to jump for joy. Now i am happier for this assistance and in addition wish you know what a powerful job you are always accomplishing teaching the mediocre ones through the use of your blog. More than likely you have never met all of us.
I would like to express my love for your kind-heartedness supporting those people that must have help on this particular subject matter. Your very own dedication to passing the solution up and down became particularly invaluable and has frequently encouraged workers like me to achieve their dreams. Your new invaluable instruction entails much to me and far more to my mates. With thanks; from each one of us.
I would like to express appreciation to you for rescuing me from such a trouble. After researching through the the web and seeing methods which were not beneficial, I believed my life was well over. Existing without the answers to the difficulties you have fixed by means of the short article is a critical case, and ones that might have badly affected my career if I hadn’t encountered your blog post. Your primary capability and kindness in touching everything was invaluable. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I hadn’t come across such a stuff like this. I’m able to at this time look ahead to my future. Thanks so much for your skilled and sensible guide. I won’t think twice to recommend your blog post to anyone who wants and needs care about this issue.
I happen to be commenting to let you understand what a incredible encounter our daughter gained viewing yuor web blog. She figured out such a lot of pieces, with the inclusion of how it is like to possess an amazing giving style to make many others really easily know a variety of extremely tough topics. You really surpassed our expected results. I appreciate you for displaying those useful, trustworthy, educational not to mention fun thoughts on this topic to Lizeth.
I precisely desired to say thanks once again. I do not know the things that I would have used in the absence of these points discussed by you about this theme. It truly was the traumatic condition for me, however , spending time with a new professional technique you processed that forced me to weep over gladness. I will be happier for this work and then trust you recognize what an amazing job you were providing instructing people today by way of your web page. I am certain you have never come across all of us.
I am writing to make you understand what a helpful discovery my daughter enjoyed reading through yuor web blog. She came to understand many issues, most notably what it is like to have an amazing giving character to get other people with no trouble know just exactly several hard to do issues. You undoubtedly did more than visitors’ desires. Thank you for giving these interesting, trustworthy, edifying and in addition unique thoughts on the topic to Emily.
A lot of thanks for every one of your labor on this website. My mom takes pleasure in doing investigation and it is easy to understand why. My spouse and i know all relating to the dynamic form you present efficient tips and tricks by means of the web blog and in addition recommend contribution from visitors about this topic so our child has always been becoming educated a great deal. Take pleasure in the rest of the year. You have been doing a superb job.
I actually wanted to write a brief remark to be able to appreciate you for the marvelous facts you are placing at this site. My particularly long internet investigation has at the end been paid with high-quality ideas to go over with my companions. I ‘d repeat that most of us readers are extremely fortunate to be in a really good site with many marvellous professionals with helpful tactics. I feel truly blessed to have used your web site and look forward to tons of more thrilling times reading here. Thank you once again for all the details.
I would like to voice my love for your kind-heartedness for women who absolutely need help with this one issue. Your very own dedication to getting the solution all around had been extraordinarily informative and have always helped employees much like me to reach their targets. Your insightful guide implies much a person like me and still more to my fellow workers. Thanks a ton; from everyone of us.
A lot of thanks for all of your effort on this site. My niece really loves setting aside time for internet research and it’s obvious why. A number of us learn all of the dynamic way you give invaluable tips and hints by means of the blog and as well as cause participation from the others on that area then our princess is really discovering a lot of things. Take pleasure in the remaining portion of the year. You’re conducting a very good job.
I as well as my pals have been taking note of the best key points on your web page and before long I had a terrible suspicion I never expressed respect to you for those secrets. Those ladies had been consequently excited to study them and now have very much been having fun with those things. Thanks for simply being indeed accommodating and then for utilizing variety of great useful guides most people are really wanting to understand about. Our own sincere apologies for not expressing gratitude to you earlier.
I truly wanted to write down a word so as to say thanks to you for those splendid secrets you are showing on this site. My time intensive internet research has now been recognized with excellent facts and strategies to write about with my relatives. I ‘d believe that we website visitors are undoubtedly lucky to exist in a useful website with very many brilliant individuals with very helpful methods. I feel really fortunate to have encountered your entire web page and look forward to really more exciting minutes reading here. Thank you once again for everything.
I wanted to draft you this little bit of remark to be able to thank you the moment again about the awesome views you’ve shared in this article. This has been certainly generous with people like you to grant easily precisely what a lot of people might have supplied as an e-book to get some dough on their own, notably now that you might have done it if you decided. The inspiring ideas additionally acted as a fantastic way to fully grasp other people online have similar zeal much like my personal own to understand somewhat more with regards to this condition. Certainly there are thousands of more pleasurable times ahead for individuals who take a look at your blog.
I must show my appreciation to this writer for rescuing me from such a incident. Because of researching through the internet and getting things which were not pleasant, I believed my life was done. Being alive devoid of the approaches to the problems you’ve solved by way of your good write-up is a serious case, as well as the ones that might have adversely affected my career if I had not encountered your site. Your main mastery and kindness in playing with all the stuff was crucial. I’m not sure what I would’ve done if I hadn’t discovered such a thing like this. I can at this moment look forward to my future. Thanks so much for your expert and effective guide. I won’t hesitate to refer your web site to anybody who ought to have tips on this matter.
I must show thanks to you just for rescuing me from this particular crisis. Just after surfing throughout the search engines and seeing proposals which were not beneficial, I figured my life was done. Existing without the strategies to the difficulties you’ve solved through your good review is a serious case, and the kind which may have negatively affected my entire career if I had not encountered your site. Your good ability and kindness in playing with the whole thing was useful. I am not sure what I would have done if I had not discovered such a step like this. I am able to at this point look forward to my future. Thanks a lot very much for your reliable and sensible help. I will not be reluctant to propose your blog post to any person who needs tips about this topic.
I must convey my affection for your kindness in support of women who absolutely need assistance with the study. Your very own commitment to passing the message all around appeared to be amazingly functional and has empowered some individuals like me to realize their ambitions. This warm and helpful information denotes this much to me and somewhat more to my office colleagues. Regards; from everyone of us.
I have to show my admiration for your kindness supporting visitors who require assistance with this particular theme. Your personal dedication to getting the message all over had become remarkably powerful and has in most cases allowed guys and women much like me to attain their goals. Your own warm and helpful guideline entails a lot to me and much more to my office colleagues. Many thanks; from all of us.