Peter Brent Littlewood (born 18 May 1955)
is a British
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
and Professor of Physics at the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
. He was the 12th Director of
Argonne National Laboratory. He previously headed the
Cavendish Laboratory as well as the
Theory of Condensed Matter group and the Theoretical Physics Research department at
Bell Laboratories
Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984),
then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996)
and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007),
is an American industrial research and scientific development company owned by mult ...
. Littlewood serves as the founding chair of the board of trustees of the
Faraday Institution
The Faraday Institution is a British research institute aiming to advance battery science and technology. It was established in 2017 as part of the UK's wider Faraday Battery Challenge. It states its mission as having four key areas: "electroc ...
.
Career
He gained a first-class degree in
Natural Sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
at the
University of Cambridge
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
in 1976, and was then awarded a
Kennedy Scholarship
Kennedy Scholarships provide full funding for up to ten British post-graduate students to study at either Harvard University or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Susan Hockfield, the sixteenth president of MIT, described the schol ...
to work at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
for two years.
[ He returned to Cambridge in 1977 to complete his PhD.]
Beginning in 1980, he worked at Bell Labs
Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984),
then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996)
and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007),
is an American industrial Research and development, research and scientific developm ...
, finishing his time there as head of the theoretical physics research after assuming the position in 1992. He continued to be a member of technical staff until 2001.[
In 1997, he became a professor at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge, and was head of the ]Theory of Condensed Matter group
The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...
, and served as Matthias Scholar at Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy (DOE), located a short distance northwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico, ...
during a 2003-04 sabbatical.[ In 2005, he returned to Cambridge to become head of the Cavendish Laboratory, before being named in 2011 the Associate Laboratory Director for Physical Sciences and Engineering at the Argonne National Laboratory.][ On March 25, 2014, Littlewood was named to the director's post. In January 2017, he retired as director to resume his research at the University of Chicago.] Since 2022, he also holds a partial appointment at the School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St Andrews of the University of St Andrews
(Aien aristeuein)
, motto_lang = grc
, mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best
, established =
, type = Public research university
Ancient university
, endowment ...
in Scotland, UK.
Littlewood holds six patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...
s, has published more than 200 articles in scientific journals and has given more than 200 invited talks at international conferences, universities and laboratories.[
]
Honours and positions
From his curriculum vitae, 2010.[
* Fellow, Royal Society of London, 2007
* Fellow, Institute of Physics, 2005
* Matthias Scholar, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2003-2004
* Consultant, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2004-
* Consultant, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, 2004-
* Fellow, Trinity College Cambridge, 1997
* Fellow, American Physical Society, 1989
* Distinguished Member of Technical Staff, AT&T Bell Laboratories, 1989
* Professeur Associé and visiting scientist, CNRS, Grenoble, 1986
* Denman Baynes Student, Clare College, Cambridge 1979-80
* Kennedy Scholar, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1976–77
* Senior Scholar, Trinity College Cambridge, 1974–76
]
Work
Littlewood's research has variously included studying the phenomenology and microscopic theory of high-temperature superconductors
Superconductivity is a set of physical properties observed in certain materials where electrical resistance vanishes and magnetic flux fields are expelled from the material. Any material exhibiting these properties is a superconductor. Unlike ...
, transition metal oxides
An oxide () is a chemical compound that contains at least one oxygen atom and one other element in its chemical formula. "Oxide" itself is the dianion of oxygen, an O2– (molecular) ion. with oxygen in the oxidation state of −2. Most of the E ...
and other correlated electronic systems, and the optical properties of highly excited semiconductors. He has applied his methods to engineering, including holographic storage
Holographic data storage is a potential technology in the area of high-capacity data storage. While magnetic and optical data storage devices rely on individual bits being stored as distinct magnetic or optical changes on the surface of the recor ...
, optical fibers and devices, and new materials for particle detectors.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Littlewood, Peter
Fellows of the Royal Society
Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge
British physicists
Living people
1955 births
Theoretical physicists
University of Chicago faculty
Scientists at Bell Labs
Santa Fe Institute people
Argonne National Laboratory people
Fellows of the American Physical Society
Fellows of the Institute of Physics
Scientists of the Cavendish Laboratory
Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni
Kennedy Scholarships
People educated at St Olave's Grammar School