Yakir Aharonov

Yakir Aharonov ForMemRS (Hebrew: יקיר אהרונוב; born August 28, 1932) is an Israeli physicist who studies quantum physics. He has taught at many universities around the world.

Aharonov works as a professor at Chapman University in California. He began teaching there in 2008. Before that, he taught at the Perimeter Institute from 2009 to 2012. He is also a professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and the University of South Carolina.

Aharonov is known for his important work in understanding how very small particles behave. In June 2024, he was elected to serve in the Royal Society of London. This group recognizes scientists for their discoveries. He also leads an organization called IYAR, which supports advanced research in Israel. His ideas have helped scientists learn more about the interesting world of quantum physics.

Biography

Yakir Aharonov was born in Haifa. He studied at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa and got a BSc in 1956. He then went to Bristol University, UK and earned his Ph.D. in 1960. After this, he taught at Brandeis University and the Yeshiva University in the United States.

He is married to Nily, who works in education. They have two children. His brother, Dov Aharonov, taught mathematics at the Technion. His niece, Dorit Aharonov, teaches at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Academic career

Yakir Aharonov studied how very small particles act in strange but important ways. In 1959, he worked with David Bohm and discovered something called the Aharonov–Bohm effect. For this work, he won a big prize called the Wolf Prize in 1998.

Aharonov also explored ideas about how future events might influence what happens now. With his team, he found ways to test these ideas without changing the outcomes. He also made predictions about how electric and magnetic forces affect moving particles.

He taught at many universities, including Brandeis University, Yeshiva University, Tel Aviv University, the University of South Carolina, George Mason University, and since 2008, he has been a professor at Chapman University.

Awards and recognition

Yakir Aharonov received many honors for his work in physics. He won the Israel Prize in 1989, the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1998, and the National Medal of Science in 2010 from President Barack Obama. He was elected to groups such as the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities and the National Academy of Sciences in the USA. In 2024, he became a Foreign Member of the Royal Society.