Chapman Physicist Receives Coveted Citation Laureate Honor

ORANGE, Calif. – François Englert, a Belgian theoretical physicist, and currently affiliated with the Institute for Quantum Studies at Chapman University in California, has received the coveted “Citation Laureate” title from the worldwide news organization Thomson Reuters. Englert’s long-time theory concerning the Brout-Englert-Higgs Boson particle was recently confirmed by scientists at CERN – The European Organization for Nuclear Research – and also the largest laboratory in the world. Englert’s theory is one of the newest breakthroughs to be proven in the world of quantum physics and is part of the most successful scientific theory in history. To see a brief video of Francois Englert explaining the Brout-Englert-Higgs Boson particle, visit: Quantum.chapman.edu/englert

Englert is a world-renowned expert in statistical physics, quantum field theory, cosmology, string theory and supergravity. According to Thomson Reuters, Citation Laureates are researchers they select as most likely to receive a Nobel Prize in the coming years. Thomson Reuters is the only organization to use quantitative data to make annual predictions of Nobel Prize winners, and their careful analysis is reflected in their success rate. Thomson Reuters takes care to emphasize that their predictions apply not just to the possibility of a candidate receiving the Nobel Prize in a single year, but rather to a number of subsequent years.

If he wins the Nobel Prize, Englert will be the fifth Nobel laureate associated with Chapman University, joining Vernon L. Smith, Ph.D., professor of economics and law and founding member of Chapman’s Economic Science Center, who won the 2002 Nobel in Economics; Chapman Presidential Fellow Elie Wiesel, acclaimed author, human rights advocate and Holocaust survivor, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, and two Distinguished Visiting Professors in Chapman’s Institute for Quantum Studies Sir Anthony Leggett and David Gross who received, respectively, the 2003 and 2004 Nobel Prizes in Physics (see quantum.chapman.edu).

Institute co-Director Dr. Yakir Aharonov has said, “As a previous winner of the Thomson-Reuters Citation Laureate award, and as a friend and collaborator, I’d like to congratulate François and wish him the very best.”

Dr. Jeff Tollaksen, the other co-Director of Chapman’s Institute said, “As a friend, I am particularly delighted for this honor bestowed on him. Prof. Englert’s achievements and reputation reflect his deep understanding of the quantum world. Many times in the past, a scientist’s research on deep physics questions led to significant practical applications such as computers and lasers. The esteemed members of our Institute have great hope for new ultra-powerful computers, which are based on discoveries arising from asking the kind of deep questions being studied at our Institute. This technology will again have a revolutionary impact on our quality of life.”

Englert has previously been awarded the 2010 J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics, the Wolf Prize in Physics in 2004 (with Brout and Higgs) and the High Energy and Particle Prize of the European Physical Society (with Brout and Higgs) in 1997 for the mechanism which unifies short and long range interactions by generating massive gauge vector bosons.

He graduated as an electrical-mechanical engineer in 1955 from the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) where he received his PhD in physical sciences in 1959. From 1959 until 1961, he worked at Cornell University, first as a research associate of Robert Brout and then as assistant professor. He then returned to the ULB where he became a university professor and was joined there by Robert Brout whom, in 1980, with Englert, coheaded the theoretical physics group. In 1998 Englert became professor emeritus. Englert joined Chapman University’s Institute for Quantum Studies in 2011, where he serves as a Distinguished Visiting Professor.

Chapman’s Institute for Quantum Studies has a just-released, cutting-edge research book titled “Quantum Theory: A Two Time Success Story,” edited by Chapman Chancellor Daniele Struppa and Jeff Tollaksen, and which features a chapter authored by Englert. The book can be found here:
http://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-88-470-5217-8/page/1

“The entire Chapman community joins me in congratulating Prof. Englert for this achievement,” said Daniele Struppa, Chancellor at Chapman University. “His discoveries have revolutionized the field of physics, and his work continues to break new ground. We are grateful for his presence here at Chapman which enlivens the intellectual life of our campus.”

Consistently ranked among the top universities in the West, Chapman University provides a uniquely personalized and interdisciplinary educational experience to highly qualified students. Our programs encourage innovation, creativity and collaboration, and focus on developing global citizen-leaders who are distinctively prepared to improve their community and their world. Visit www.chapman.edu

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Photo caption: Chapman University Institute for Quantum Studies directors Dr. Jeff Tollaksen and Dr. Yakir Aharonov listen to Dr. Francois Englert during a visit to the Quantumhaus in Laguna Beach, CA.