Hermann Haken (born 12 July 1927) is

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 emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

theoretical physics Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experim ...

at the

University of Stuttgart The University of Stuttgart (german: Universität Stuttgart) is a leading research university located in Stuttgart, Germany. It was founded in 1829 and is organized into 10 faculties. It is one of the oldest technical universities in Germany wi ...

. He is known as the founder of synergetics. He is a cousin of the mathematician Wolfgang Haken, who proved the

Four color theorem In mathematics, the four color theorem, or the four color map theorem, states that no more than four colors are required to color the regions of any map so that no two adjacent regions have the same color. ''Adjacent'' means that two regions sha ...

. He is a nephew of Werner Haken, a doctoral student of

Max Planck Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck (, ; 23 April 1858 – 4 October 1947) was a German theoretical physicist whose discovery of energy quanta won him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918. Planck made many substantial contributions to theoretical p ...

Biography

After his studies in mathematics and physics in

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the German state of Saxony-An ...

and

Erlangen Erlangen (; East Franconian: ''Erlang'', Bavarian: ''Erlanga'') is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative district Erlangen), and with 116,062 inha ...

, receiving his PhD in mathematics in 1951 at the

University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

and being guest lecturer at universities in the UK and US, Haken was appointed as a full professor in theoretical physics at the University of Stuttgart. His research has been in

non linear optics Nonlinear optics (NLO) is the branch of optics that describes the behaviour of light in ''nonlinear media'', that is, media in which the polarization density P responds non-linearly to the electric field E of the light. The non-linearity is typica ...

(his specialities are

laser physics Laser science or laser physics is a branch of optics that describes the theory and practice of lasers. Laser science is principally concerned with quantum electronics, laser construction, optical cavity design, the physics of producing a popula ...

particle physics Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of fundamental particles and forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standard Model as fermions (matter particles) an ...

statistical physics Statistical physics is a branch of physics that evolved from a foundation of statistical mechanics, which uses methods of probability theory and statistics, and particularly the mathematical tools for dealing with large populations and approxim ...

and

group theory In abstract algebra, group theory studies the algebraic structures known as groups. The concept of a group is central to abstract algebra: other well-known algebraic structures, such as rings, fields, and vector spaces, can all be seen ...

). Haken developed his institute in a relatively short time to be an international centre for laser theory, starting in 1960 when Theodore Maiman built the first experimental laser. The interpretation of the laser principles as

self-organization Self-organization, also called spontaneous order in the social sciences, is a process where some form of overall order arises from local interactions between parts of an initially disordered system. The process can be spontaneous when suffic ...

of non equilibrium systems paved the way at the end of the 1960s to the development of synergetics, of which Haken is recognized as the founder. Haken is the author of some 23 textbooks and monographs that cover an impressive number of topics from laser physics,

atomic physics Atomic physics is the field of physics that studies atoms as an isolated system of electrons and an atomic nucleus. Atomic physics typically refers to the study of atomic structure and the interaction between atoms. It is primarily concerned wit ...

quantum field theory In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines classical field theory, special relativity, and quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct physical models of subatomic particles and ...

, to synergetics. Although Haken's early books tend to be rather mathematical, at least one of his books ''Light'' is nicely written, for the more general reader, and loaded with physical insights. One of his successful popular books is ''Erfolgsgeheimnis der Natur'', or in English, ''The Science of Structure: Synergetics''.H.Haken,The Science of Structure: Synergetics, (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1981) For his wide range of contributions, he received many international prizes or medals, including the Max Born Medal and Prize by the British

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, research and application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide membership of over 20,000. The IOP is the Physic ...

and the German Physical Society in 1976, Albert A. Michelson Medal of the

Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and the center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memori ...

, Philadelphia, 1981, Great Order of the Federal Republic of Germany with star in 1986,

Max Planck medal The Max Planck medal is the highest award of the German Physical Society , the world's largest organization of physicists, for extraordinary achievements in theoretical physics. The prize has been awarded annually since 1929, with few exceptions, ...

in 1990, Honda Prize 1992, Arthur-Burkhardt-Prize in 1993, Lorenz-Oken-Medal of the Society of German Natural Scientists and Medical Doctors in 1994, and Prize for the Outstanding Contributions to the Development of Medicine and Psychology, Danube University Krems, in 2005.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Haken, Hermann 1927 births Living people 20th-century German physicists Optical physicists Quantum physicists Probability theorists German science writers Scientists from Leipzig Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg alumni University of Erlangen-Nuremberg alumni Academic staff of the University of Stuttgart Theoretical physicists Mathematical physicists Members of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts German male non-fiction writers Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) Members of the German Academy of Sciences at Berlin Winners of the Max Planck Medal