David J. Wineland
Facts
© The Nobel Foundation. Photo: U. Montan
David J. Wineland
The Nobel Prize in Physics 2012
Born: 24 February 1944, Milwaukee, WI, USA
Affiliation at the time of the award: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, USA; University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
Prize motivation: “for ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems”
Prize share: 1/2
Life
David Wineland was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the United States. He first studied at the University of California, Berkeley, and later earned his PhD from Harvard University under the supervision of Norman Ramsey. After completing his PhD, Wineland worked in a team led by Hans Dehmelt at the University of Washington in Seattle. Since 1975 he has worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and is also associated with the University of Colorado Boulder. He is married with two children.
Work
When it comes to the smallest components of our universe, our usual understanding of how the world works ceases to apply. We have entered the realm of quantum physics. For a long time, many quantum phenomena could only be examined theoretically. Starting in the late 1970s, David Wineland has designed ingenious experiments to study quantum phenomena when matter and light interact. Using electric fields, Wineland has successfully captured electrically charged atoms, or ions, in a kind of trap and studied them with the help of small packets of light, or photons.
Nobel Prizes and laureates
Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.
See them all presented here.
