Thomas Witten is an American theoretical
physicist working in the field of
soft matter physics.
Biography
Witten received his doctorate in physics in 1971 from the
University of California, San Diego.
He is currently the Homer J. Livingston Professor in the
James Franck Institute at the
University of Chicago.
He is known in particular for his work on
diffusion-limited aggregation
Diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) is the process whereby particles undergoing a random walk due to Brownian motion cluster together to form aggregates of such particles. This theory, proposed by T.A. Witten Jr. and L.M. Sander in 1981, is app ...
, crumpled sheets and coffee rings.
His current research interests include polymers, complex fluids and granular materials.
He cowrote the "Structured Fluids: Polymers, Colloids, Surfactants" () together with
Philip Pincus.
In 2002 he received the
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of k ...
Polymer Physics Prize and he is an elected fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
In 2010 he held the Lorentz Chair at
Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Witten, Thomas
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
21st-century American physicists
Theoretical physicists
University of Chicago faculty
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
University of California, San Diego alumni