Join us at this special session “Honoring 2023 Nobel Science: Attosecond Physics, Quantum Dots, Human Rights” as we welcome and hear from the esteemed recipients of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics and Chemistry. This can’t-miss session will feature inspirational perspectives from:
- Jonathan A. Bagger, CEO, American Physical Society, and Young-Kee Kim, President, American Physical Society, will give the opening remarks
- Pierre Agostini, PhD will deliver his insightful talk
- Anne L'Huillier, PhD will address attendees from Sweden
- Moungi G Bawendi, PhD will present his enlightening talk
The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to both Agostini and L'Huillier for experimental methods that generate attosecond pulses of light for the study of electron dynamics. The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Bawendi for the discovery and synthesis of quantum dots.
This special session closes with an impactful discussion on human rights, as we honor imprisoned Iranian physicist Narges Mohmmadi, 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and previous APS Andrei Sakharov prize recipient.
To honor her and the legacy of human rights, we have brief presentations from Francis Slakey, Joel Lebowitz, Encieh Erfani, and the 2023 APS Andrei Sakharov Prize recipient, Eugene Chudnovsky.
Session chairs: Paul Chaikin and Smitha Vishveshwara
Pierre Agostini
Agostini earned his doctoral degree from Université Aix-Marseille in 1968. After completing his degree, he became a researcher at CEA Saclay, where he stayed, in various positions, until 2002. During these years, he held visiting positions at the University of Southern California, FOM Amsterdam, and BNL. After holding a string of other visiting positions, he settled at Ohio State University in 2005 as a Professor of Physics.
He has received the Joop Los Award from FOM Netherlands, OSA’s William F. Meggers Award in 2007, and is a Humboldt Fellow. He was elected a Fellow of OSA in 2008 “for leadership in the development of innovative experiments providing major insights into the dynamics of the nonlinear response of atoms and molecules submitted to strong infrared laser pulses.”
On October 3, 2023 Agostini, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, along with Frenec Krausz and Anne L’Huillier, for experimental methods that generate attosecond pulses of light for the study of electron dynamics in matter.
Moungi Bawendi
Lester Wolfe Professor of Chemistry
MIT Department of Chemistry
Professor Moungi Bawendi received his A.B. in 1982 from Harvard University and his Ph.D. in 1988 from The University of Chicago. This was followed by two years of postdoctoral research at Bell Laboratories, working with Louis Brus, where he began his studies on nanomaterials. Bawendi joined the faculty at MIT in 1990, becoming Associate Professor in 1995 and Professor in 1996.
Professor Bawendi was one of the initial developers of the field of colloidal quantum dots. He has followed an interdisciplinary research program that has probed the science and technology of chemically synthesized nanostructures. His work has advanced both the fundamental studies of nanomaterials as well as their applications. His laboratory has demonstrated applications of nanomaterials for light emission, photodetection, spectral sensing, solar energy harvesting, and bio-imaging. His group has pioneered novel tools for the spectroscopy of single nanostructures as well as for in-vivo imaging.
Professor Bawendi’s studies have included: (1) the development of methods for synthesizing, characterizing, and processing quantum dots, magnetic nanoparticles, and J-aggregates, (2) the study of the fundamental optical and magnetic properties of nanostructures using a variety of spectroscopic methods, including the development of photon correlation tools to study single nanoscopic emitters, (3) incorporating quantum dots, magnetic particles, J-aggregates, and thin film materials into optical and opto-electronic device structures, and (4) developing optical tools and probes, including nanoparticles and other imaging agents, for biomedical imaging.
Professor Bawendi is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences.
Professor Bawendi is a co-laureate of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.