David Thouless | Biography, Nobel Prize, & Facts

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Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). </div> <div class="type-menu"> <label for="feedback-type" class="label mb-10">Feedback Type</label> <select id="feedback-type" class="form-select mb-30" name="feedbackTypeId" required> <option value="" selected="selected">Select a type (Required)</option> <option value="1">Factual Correction</option> <option value="2">Spelling/Grammar Correction</option> <option value="3">Link Correction</option> <option value="4">Additional Information</option> <option value="5">Other</option> </select> </div> <label for="feedback" class="label mb-10">Your Feedback</label> <textarea id="feedback" class="form-control mb-30" name="feedback" maxlength="3000" rows="7" required></textarea> <button class="btn btn-blue" type="submit">Submit Feedback</button> </form> <div class="success-messaging d-none mt-30"> <div class="title">Thank you for your feedback</div> <p>Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-websites-modal size-lg d-none"> <div class="md-modal-body"> <div class="h2 font-serif pb-15 border-bottom font-weight-bold"> External Websites </div> <div class="pb-20"> <ul class="list-unstyled mt-20 lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2016/thouless-facts.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">Nobelprize.org - Biography of David J. Thouless</a></li> <li><a class="external" href="http://mediatheque.lindau-nobel.org/laureates/thouless" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings - Biography of David J. Thouless</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="toc-header-marker"></div> <button class="ai-ask-button btn btn-sm border-2 btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 d-none mr-0 mr-lg-10 ml-5 ml-sm-10 ml-lg-0 p-10 px-sm-5 px-md-10 js-header-ai-ask-button"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> <div class="caption alternate-titles">Also known as: David James Thouless</div> <div class="md-byline module-spacing "> <div class="font-serif font-12"> <span class="written-by text-gray-700"> Written by </span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/editor/Erik-Gregersen/6723" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">Erik Gregersen</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Erik Gregersen is a senior editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica, specializing in the physical sciences and technology. Before joining Britannica in 2007, he worked at the University of Chicago Press on the...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Erik Gregersen</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Thouless/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn btn-sm border-2 btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 module-spacing js-inline-ai-ask-button p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="qf-title font-weight-bold font-14 mb-10 text-center"> Quick Facts</div> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>In full: </dt> <dd>David James Thouless</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Born: </dt> <dd>September 21, 1934, Bearsden, <a href="/place/Scotland">Scotland</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Died: </dt> <dd>April 6, 2019, <a href="/place/Cambridge-England">Cambridge</a>, <a href="/place/England">England</a> (aged 84)</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Awards And Honors: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/Nobel-Prize">Nobel Prize (2016)</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Subjects Of Study: </dt> <dd><a href="/science/Hall-effect">Hall effect</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/magnetic-field">magnetic field</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/superconductivity">superconductivity</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/superfluidity">superfluidity</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/topology">topology</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/David-Thouless"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref1238139"></span>David Thouless</strong> (born September 21, 1934, Bearsden, Scotland—died April 6, 2019, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Cambridge-England" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Cambridge</a>, England) was a British-born American physicist who was awarded the 2016 <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Nobel-Prize" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nobel Prize</a> in Physics for his work on using <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/topology" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">topology</a> to explain <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/superconductivity" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">superconductivity</a> and the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="quantum" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quantum" data-type="MW">quantum</a> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/Hall-effect" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Hall effect</a> in two-dimensional materials. He shared the prize with British-born American physicists <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Duncan-Haldane" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Duncan Haldane</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Michael-Kosterlitz" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Michael Kosterlitz</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Thouless received a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/bachelors-degree" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">bachelor’s degree</a> from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/University-of-Cambridge" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">University of Cambridge</a> in 1955 and a doctorate in theoretical <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/physics-science" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">physics</a> in 1958 from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Cornell-University" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Cornell University</a>. He was a physicist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory from 1958 to 1959 and then was a research fellow at the University of Birmingham until 1961. He returned to Cambridge and was a lecturer until 1965 and was a professor of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/mathematical-physics" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">mathematical physics</a> at Birmingham from 1965 to 1978. After being a professor of applied <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/science" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">science</a> at <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Yale-University" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Yale University</a> from 1979 to 1980, he went to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/University-of-Washington" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">University of Washington</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Seattle-Washington" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Seattle</a>, as a professor of physics and became an <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="emeritus" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/emeritus" data-type="EB">emeritus</a> professor in 2003.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In the early 1970s, when Thouless and Kosterlitz were at Birmingham together, they became interested in phase transitions in two dimensions. Phase transitions happen when a material changes from one ordered type of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/matter" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">matter</a> to another; the melting of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/ice" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">ice</a> is a phase transition because the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/water" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">water</a> changes from one phase (<a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/solid-state-of-matter" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">solid</a> ice) to another (<a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/liquid-state-of-matter" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">liquid</a> water). In two dimensions, it was believed, random thermal fluctuations would make any kind of order and thus any kind of phase transition impossible. If there were no phase transitions, phenomena like <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/superfluidity" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">superfluidity</a> and superconductivity could not occur. Thouless and Kosterlitz discovered a topological phase <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="transition" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/transition" data-type="EB">transition</a> in which, at cold <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/temperature" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">temperatures</a>, spinning vortices would form in closely separated pairs and, as the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/temperature" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">temperature</a> increased, the material would enter another phase in which the vortices split apart and travel freely. This transition is known as the Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) transition (or sometimes the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless [BKT] transition).</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/physics-and-natural-law" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/01/115001-131-7278E518/Enrico-Fermi-Italian-problem-physics-1950.jpg" alt="Italian-born physicist Dr. Enrico Fermi draws a diagram at a blackboard with mathematical equations. circa 1950." class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Physics and Natural Law</div> </div> </a><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In 1983 Thouless also used topology to explain the quantum Hall effect, in which, when a thin <a href="https://www.britannica.com/art/conductor-music" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">conducting</a> layer is placed between two <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/semiconductor" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">semiconductors</a> and cooled to near <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/absolute-zero" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">absolute zero</a> (−273.15 °C [−459.67 °F]), the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/resistance-electronics" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">electrical resistance</a> of the conductor changes in discrete steps as a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/magnetic-field" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">magnetic field</a> varies. In fact, the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="inverse" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/inverse" data-type="EB">inverse</a> of the electrical <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/resistance-electronics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">resistance</a>, called the conductance, varies in integer steps. He found that the conductance followed a kind of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/integer" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">integer</a> known from topology as the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shiing-shen-Chern" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Chern</a> number. This work was later extended by Haldane to show that such effects that were dependent on the Chern number could occur even without a magnetic field.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature font-12"><a href="/editor/Erik-Gregersen/6723">Erik Gregersen</a></span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-simplify-root"></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":2080610,"pageLength":409,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.36"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.133.36' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"A","adLeg":"A","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"BIO_MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":true} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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David Thouless | Biography, Nobel Prize, & Facts | Britannica