The Nobel Prize in Physics 2003

Abstract

The phenomenology of condensed quantum liquids has been the winning theme in last year's Nobel competition-Alexei A. Abrikosov (Argonne National Laboratory), Vitaly 1. Ginzburg (Lebedev Institute in Moscow), and Anthony J. Leggett (University of Illinois at Urbana) share the 2003 Nobel prize in physics for their pioneering contributions to the theory of superconductors and superfluidity:' Their names are added to the illustrious list of Nobellaureates in the field oflow temperature physics. Superconductivity/fluidityhas always been the most glamorous topic in condensed matter physics. The milestones characterizing the field start with the discovery of superconductivity in mercury by Kamerlingh Onnes in 1911. In 1938, the superfluid phase of 4He was found by Kapitsa in Moscow and independently by Alien and Misener in Cambridge. Since metallic mercury transports electric current free ofdissipation the original name 'super conductor' stuck; liquid He is uncharged and hence the dissipation-free mass flow is termed superfluidity. While the superfluid properties ofbosonic 4He were quickly understood in terms of a condensation into a macroscopic quantum state (Landau, 1941), the microscopic origin of superconductivity remained a puzzle over haif a century, uIltil Bardeel1, Cooper, and Schrieffer (1957) proposed a pairing mechanism allowing bound fermions to condense. This paved the way for the theoretical prediction that fermionic 3He should become superfluid as well, but it took another decade until Lee, Osheroff, and Richardson observed the superfluid phases of 3He in 1972. The unexpected discovery ofhigh-temperature superconductors by Bednorz and Miiller in 1986 defined the most prominent research direction in condensed matter physics for the decade to follow. Last year the spectacular insights that follow from phenomenological theories have been properly recognized.