Austrian quantum physicist becomes the fourth Nobel laureate among the patrons of the planned experience center
Even though Albert Einstein could never fully come to terms with the implications of quantum mechanics during his lifetime, his theories remain influential for quantum physicists to this day. This is also true for Prof. Dr. Anton Zeilinger, the 2022 Nobel Prize winner in Physics. For this reason, the Austrian scientist is now supporting the planned Albert Einstein Discovery Center in Ulm. “Albert Einstein was a fascinating pioneer in many fields. Particularly exciting is his idea that light consists of particles and that these particles can be entangled with each other. He called this ‘spooky action at a distance.’ The Einstein Center will present this in an illustrative way for everyone,” says Zeilinger, who received the Nobel Prize two years ago together with Alain Aspect and John Clauser for experiments with entangled photons, proving the violation of Bell’s inequalities, and pioneering quantum information science. Nancy Hecker-Denschlag, the chairwoman of the Albert Einstein Discovery Center Ulm e.V., emphasizes how important this support is for the project: “We are very pleased that with Anton Zeilinger, already the fourth Nobel laureate is committed to our endeavor. This makes it clear that with the Discovery Center we can create a radiant place for education and scientific experience.”
Anton Zeilinger 2023 (© Jacqueline Godany)
Born in 1945, Anton Zeilinger was a professor at the University of Vienna until 2013 and gained fame even before his Nobel Prize through high-profile experiments on quantum teleportation in Innsbruck and Vienna. Furthermore, he worked in the field of applications of quantum physics, especially in the new areas of quantum information and quantum cryptography. He also devoted significant attention to the foundations of quantum physics and their implications for everyday experiences. This approach connects him with Albert Einstein, whose initially abstract theories continue to have a great impact on everyone’s life today—for example, as the basis for photovoltaic systems or highly precise GPS navigation.
He received his Nobel Prize in 2022—101 years after Albert Einstein—together with French physicist Alain Aspect and American physicist John Clauser. The Nobel Prize Committee honored experiments with entangled photons and generally entangled quantum states, where, among other things, so-called quantum teleportation could be demonstrated. This can be used in practice, for example, for quantum computers, which are being researched, among other places, in the Ulm Science Park.
Before Anton Zeilinger, the association had already secured three other Nobel laureates as patrons for the planned Albert Einstein Discovery Center. The other patrons are:
Prof. Dr. Reinhard Genzel, who in 2020, together with American astronomer Andrea Ghez, received half of the Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery of the supermassive black hole known as Sagittarius A* at the center of the Milky Way.
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Ketterle, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2001 for the creation of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases.Prof. Dr. Bert Sakmann, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1991 for the development of the “patch-clamp” technique for measuring charge transport through cell membranes.
