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2025 Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded for Groundbreaking Quantum Discoveries
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded jointly to John Clarke (Emeritus Professor at the University of California, Berkeley), Michel H. Devoret (Professor at Yale University and University of California, Santa Barbara), and John M. Martinis (Physicist formerly at Google Quantum AI and University of California, Santa Barbara) “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantisation in an electric circuit.”
What the Laureates Discovered
The Nobel Prize was given for a series of experiments that demonstrated fundamental aspects of quantum mechanics at scales visible to the human eye. Traditionally, quantum mechanical phenomena such as tunnelling and energy quantisation were observed only in microscopic systems like atoms and particles. Macroscopic quantum tunnelling refers to the ability of a system to transition through a barrier that classical physics would deem impossible — a phenomenon brought to life in carefully engineered superconducting electrical circuits. In addition, the laureates showed that these circuits absorb and emit energy only in discrete amounts (quantisation), confirming that large, engineered systems can obey the same quantum rules normally seen only at the atomic scale.
Why It Matters
The work recognised by the Nobel Committee is not only of foundational scientific importance but also of profound technological relevance. By showing that quantum effects can be produced and controlled in larger, engineered systems, this discovery laid essential groundwork for modern quantum technologies, including superconducting qubits used in emerging quantum computers, as well as quantum sensing and communication technologies. Quantum mechanics underpins much of today’s technology — from lasers to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computer electronics — and extending its principles to macroscopic, engineered systems opens new possibilities for future technologies.
A Milestone in Quantum Physics
The Nobel Prize in Physics has a long history of honouring discoveries that reshape our understanding of nature and spur technological innovation. The 2025 laureates’ achievement continues this tradition by connecting the abstract principles of quantum theory with tangible systems that can be built, measured, and potentially harnessed for next-generation applications.
References:
NobelPrize.org, 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics Summary, Nobel Prize official documentation.
NobelPrize.org, The 2025 Physics Prize – Quantum properties on a human scale, popular information.
(2026/02/06).
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