Stony Brook University physicist Alexander Zamolodchikov awarded prestigious Breakthrough Prize
Zamolodchikov "is one of the most accomplished theoretical physicists worldwide," said George Sterman, Director of the C.N. Yang Institute for Theoretical Physics at Stony Brook University's Department of Physics and Astronomy.
Credit: John Griffin/SBU Communications
A Stony Brook University physics professor will share the 2024 Breakthrough Prize for fundamental physics, it was announced this week.
The Breakthrough Prize, nicknamed the Oscars of Science, is the largest international science award and since 2012 has recognized achievements in physics, mathematics and life sciences.
Russian-born theoretical and mathematical physicist Alexander Zamolodchikov will share his award — and $3 million in prize money — with University of Oxford physicist John Cardy, with whom he has never collaborated but whose areas of research were "intertwined to a large degree, a sort of synergy," Zamolodchikov said.
The awards, announced Thursday, are handed out in April at a Los Angeles ceremony drawing stars of Hollywood, sports, music and Silicon Valley.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Stony Brook University physics professor Alexander Zamolodchikov will share the 2024 Breakthrough Prize for fundamental physics, it was announced Thursday.
- The Breakthrough Prize, nicknamed the Oscars of Science, is the largest international science award and since 2012 has recognized achievements in physics, mathematics and life sciences.
- Zamolodchikov has won many scientific awards over a long career that began in the former Soviet Union, where he and his late twin brother were both noted physicists.
Zamolodchikov "is one of the most accomplished theoretical physicists worldwide," said George Sterman, Director of the C.N. Yang Institute for Theoretical Physics and Distinguished Professor at Stony Brook University's Department of Physics and Astronomy.
"He has made groundbreaking advances, with enormous impact in many physics fields ... including our understanding of fundamental matter and forces," Sterman said.
Theoretical physics employs mathematical models rather than actual experimental tools to understand natural phenomena.
Zamolodchikov came to Stony Brook in 2016 from Rutgers University, where he co-founded Rutgers' New High Energy Theory Center.
He turns 71 on Monday and has won many scientific awards over a long career that began in the former Soviet Union, where he and his late twin brother were both noted physicists. Yet he is a little ambivalent about the award, he said in an interview this week.
"On the one hand, it's nice to have attention," he said, "but I think real science needs isolation. You do it behind closed doors."
And on that work rests the hope of humankind to survive the challenges confronting it, he said.
"I think hard science is the most important thing in cultural development ... the most essential part of the development of humankind," he said.
Tackling complicated questions
His own work poses, and sometimes answers, questions about the "fine structure of matter," he said, that can be difficult to explain to nonscientists.
As described on his member page for the National Academy of Sciences, he works, in part, on "general aspects of Quantum Field Theories in two space-time dimensions, and applications to theoretical problems in Condensed Matter Physics. … He also works on applications of Quantum Field theory ... to non-equilibrium Statistical Mechanics … "
Quantum field theory was invented to describe elementary particle physics, but its mathematical complexity "makes it difficult to understand what kind of physical behavior it can or can’t exhibit. This makes it desirable to look at simplified versions that allow for complete analysis," he explained.
The work for which he is best known is based on such simplified theory, he said, in which three-dimensional space is replaced by a one-dimensional line. By doing so, he was able to develop exact solutions to an important class of theories, shedding light on their inner workings.
He also introduced a theorem, called the C-Theorem, that establishes relation between the short-distance structures described by quantum field theory and phenomena it can exhibit at large distances.
While quantum field theory describes elementary particles, it also was shown to describe critical phenomena in classic physics, such as the point of transition from liquid to vapor — for example, when water in a tea kettle turns into steam.
"Although I have proven it only for one-dimension cases, John [Cardy] and others suggested a beautiful extension that applied to more general theories," he said.
His work has had relevance in mathematics, and in the realm of quantum information, he said.
For now, he said, he will continue working on the cutting edge of theoretical physics, encouraged by his recent work that "makes me believe it's not the end of the story. I hope so."
3rd winner from Stony Brook
Zamolodchikov holds the C.N. Yang/Wei Deng chair in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and C.N. Yang Institute for Theoretical Physics at Stony Brook University. He is the third Stony Brook physicist to win the Breakthrough Prize.
The Breakthrough Prizes were founded by Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google; Priscilla Chan and her husband, Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Meta; Julia and Yuri Milner; and Anne Wojcicki, co-founder and CEO of 23andMe.
The prizes are funded out of foundations that have bestowed over $300 million to top scientists selected by prior prize winners, and to early-career researchers in physics and mathematics. In a male-dominated field, prizes also recognize women mathematicians.
This year's prize for mathematics will honor Simon Brendle of Columbia University for contributions in differential geometry, while multiple life sciences prizes will go to scientists who advanced treatment and understanding of cystic fibrosis, cancer and Parkinson's disease.
Carol Polsky writes news and features on wide-ranging topics, from superstorm Sandy, 9/11 and presidential elections to health care and the economy.
