Willis E. Lamb Jr.

Nobel Laureate, Physics, 1955

Regents' Professor Emeritus of Optical Sciences
Regents' Professor Emeritus of Physics
Regents' Professor Emeritus of Arizona Research Laboratories

Photo: Professor Willis E. Lamb, Jr.Willis E. Lamb Jr. died early in the morning on May 15, 2008, at the age of 95. He is survived by his wife, Elsie Vezey Lamb, and a brother, Perry, who lives in Maine.

 

Lamb received a Nobel Prize in 1955 for his experimental work on the fine structure of the hydrogen atom and the discovery of a phenomenon called the Lamb shift. This discovery revolutionized the quantum theory of matter and led physicists to rethink the basic concepts behind the application of quantum theory to electromagnetism. His work became one of the foundations of quantum electrodynamics, a key aspect of modern elementary particle physics.

 

He worked for many years in the general area of atomic spectroscopy and theoretical laser physics. His published research anticipated the discovery of the maser and its optical counterpart, the laser, and made pioneering contributions to the theoretical understanding of them and to the subject of quantum optics.

 

Lamb joined the University of Arizona's Optical Sciences Center in 1974 and retired in 2002. He and a generous group of friends established two scholarships in his name, a legacy to all who pursue their passions and endeavors to discover great things. The scholarship was awarded for the first time a few weeks before his death, to Amber Young, a graduate student at the College of Optical Sciences.


Education

  • D.Sc., Columbia University, 1990
  • D.Sc., Gustavus Adolphus College, 1975
  • L.H.D., Yeshiva University, 1965
  • M.A., Yale University, 1961
  • M.A., Oxford University, 1956
  • D.Sc., University of Pennsylvania, 1953
  • Ph.D., University of California, 1938
  • B.S., University of California, 1934

Employment

  • The University of Arizona: Regents' Professor Emeritus, 2003–date; Regents' Professor, 1989–2003; Professor Emeritus, Optical Sciences and Physics, 2003–date; Professor, Optical Sciences and Physics, 1974–2003; Arizona Research Laboratories, Professor Emeritus, 2003–date; Arizona Research Laboratories, Professor, 1983–2003
  • Yale University: J. Willard Gibbs Professor of Physics, 1972–1974; Henry Ford II Professor of Physics, 1962–1972
  • Oxford University: Wykeham Professor of Physics and Fellow of New College, 1956–1962
  • Stanford University: Professor, 1951–1956
  • Columbia University: Professor, 1945–1952; Instructor, 1938–1945

Awards and Honors

  • Nobel Prize in Physics, 1955
  • Nobel Foundation, Lennart Bernadotte Award, 2004
  • World Federation of Scientists, Gian Carlo Wick Gold Medal, 2002
  • National Medal of Science, 2000
  • Society for Optical and Quantum Electronics, Einstein Medal, 1992
  • Physical Society of London, Guthrie Award
  • National Academy of Sciences, Member
  • The Optical Society (OSA), Fellow
  • American Physical Society, Fellow
  • Royal Society of Edinburgh, Honorary Fellow

Research

  • Quantum mechanics of optical phenomena, theory of measurement.