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Three share Nobel prize
05/10/2004 12:24 - (SA)
Matt Moore
Sweden - Americans David J Gross, H David Politzer and Frank Wilczeck have won the 2004 Nobel Prize in physics for their work in the discovery and exploration of strong force and quarks.
The trio, researchers at the University of California, Santa
Barbara, the California Institute of Technology and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology made important theoretical
discoveries "concerning the strong force, or the 'colour force' as
it is also called", foundation in its citation.
"The strong force is the one that is dominant in the atomic nucleus, acting between the quarks inside the proton and the neutron."
Their discoveries, made public in 1973, led to the theory of
quantum chromodynamics, or QCD.
"This theory was an important contribution to the Standard
Model, the theory that describes all physics connected with the
electromagnetic force (which acts between charged particles), the
weak force (which is important for the sun's energy production) and the strong force (which acts between quarks)," the foundation said.
Alfred Nobel, the wealthy Swedish industrialist and inventor of
dynamite who endowed the prizes, left only vague guidelines for the selection committee.
In his will, he said the prize should be given to those who
"shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind" and "shall
have made the most important discovery or invention within the
field of physics".
The academy, which also chooses the chemistry and economics
winners, invited nominations from previous recipients and experts
in the fields before cutting down its choices.
Last year physicists Vitaly L Ginzburg of Russia and Americans
A Abrikosov and Anthony J Leggett were honoured for their work on
superconductivity and superfluidity, the motion of a fluid without internal friction.
The two phenomena are linked, in that superconductivity arises
from how pairs of electrons behave, while superfluidity comes about from pairings of atoms.
Researchers hope to harness superconductivity for such uses as
power lines that conduct current without loss to resistance and
high-speed trains that float above the tracks.
- AP
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