Trio Wins 2025 Physics Nobel for Demonstrating Macroscopic Quantum Tunnelling
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to John Clarke, Michel Devoret, and John Martinis for their groundbreaking work on macroscopic quantum tunnelling. Their experiments in the 1980s proved that quantum mechanical laws, usually associated with subatomic particles, could govern entire electrical circuits visible to the naked eye. By using Josephson junctions and superconductors, they demonstrated that current could 'tunnel' through barriers even at zero voltage. This discovery laid the foundation for modern quantum computing, specifically the development of superconducting qubits, and advanced our understanding of quantum states in larger systems.
Key Points
- The laureates proved that electrical circuits can obey quantum mechanical laws rather than just classical physics.
- They used Josephson junctions to observe tunnelling and energy quantisation in superconducting circuits.
- Their findings are fundamental to the operation of superconducting qubits used in today's quantum computers.
- The research highlights the value of fundamental inquiry not driven by immediate utility, which eventually leads to technological revolutions.
Exam Facts
- Laureates: John Clarke (UC Berkeley), Michel Devoret (Yale), and John Martinis (UC Santa Barbara).
- Prize amount: 11 million Swedish kroner (approx. ₹1 crore).
- Key technology: Josephson junctions and superconducting qubits.
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