The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2022 goes to two EU-funded researchers Alain Aspect and Anton Zeilinger. They share the prize equally with John F. Clauser “for experiments with entangled photons, establishing the violation of Bell inequalities and pioneering quantum information science”. The Nobel laureates’ work cleared the way for new technology based upon quantum information.
Notably, both Alain Aspect and Anton Zeilinger have been funded by the EU through the European Research Council (ERC). Anton Zeilinger also participated in further EU-funded projects through the 5th Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP5), the 6th EU Research Framework Programme (FP6) and the 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7).
This follows yesterday’s announcement that Svante Pääbo, another EU-funded researcher, has been awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said:
“Congratulations to the new Nobel laureates: Alain Aspect, Svante Pääbo and Anton Zeilinger. We are proud that these brilliant scientists have been funded by the European Research Council and previously by other EU research and innovation programmes. It pays off to invest in top researchers and supporting them in their pursuit for scientific excellence.”
The ERC funded Alain Aspect through an Advanced Grant 2010 for his project on “Quantum Atom Optics from Entangled Pairs to Strongly Correlated Systems”, worth € 2.13 million for 5 years. Anton Zeilinger received an ERC Advanced Grant 2008 for his project on “Photonic quantum information technology and the foundations of quantum physics in higher dimensions”, worth €1.75 million for 5 years.
After yesterday’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine that was awarded to an ERC grantee, this brings the number of ERC grantees winning a Nobel Prize up to twelve since the ERC was created by the EU in 2007.
Alain Aspect is professor at Université Paris-Saclay and École Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France. Anton Zeilinger is Professor at University of Vienna, Austria. John F. Clauser is Research Physicist at J.F. Clauser & Assoc., United States of America.
More information
European Research Council press release
Nobel Prize in Physics 2022
