Sergio Doplicher (born 30 December 1940) is an Italian

mathematical physicist Mathematical physics refers to the development of mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The ''Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the developmen ...

, who mainly dealt with the mathematical foundations of

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 a ...

and

quantum gravity Quantum gravity (QG) is a field of theoretical physics that seeks to describe gravity according to the principles of quantum mechanics; it deals with environments in which neither gravitational nor quantum effects can be ignored, such as in the v ...

Biography

Sergio Doplicher graduated in Physics at the

Sapienza University of Rome The Sapienza University of Rome ( it, Sapienza – Università di Roma), also called simply Sapienza or the University of Rome, and formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a public research university located in Rome, Ita ...

in 1963 under the supervision of

Giovanni Jona-Lasinio Giovanni Jona-Lasinio (born 1932), sometimes called Gianni Jona, is an Italian theoretical physicist, best known for his works on quantum field theory and statistical mechanics. He pioneered research concerning spontaneous symmetry breaking, and ...

. From 1976 to 2011 he was

full professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

quantum mechanics Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, q ...

in the mathematics department of Sapienza University, retiring there in 2011 as

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 ...

. He is known for his research based on the

Haag–Kastler axioms Algebraic quantum field theory (AQFT) is an application to local quantum physics of C*-algebra theory. Also referred to as the Haag–Kastler axiomatic framework for quantum field theory, because it was introduced by . The axioms are stated in term ...

and for his collaboration with

Rudolf Haag Rudolf Haag (17 August 1922 – 5 January 2016) was a German theoretical physicist, who mainly dealt with fundamental questions of quantum field theory. He was one of the founders of the modern formulation of quantum field theory and he identifie ...

. With John E. Roberts and Haag, he examined superselection rules in the

algebraic quantum field theory Algebraic quantum field theory (AQFT) is an application to local quantum physics of C*-algebra theory. Also referred to as the Haag–Kastler axiomatic framework for quantum field theory, because it was introduced by . The axioms are stated in ter ...

, providing the first proof of the

spin–statistics theorem In quantum mechanics, the spin–statistics theorem relates the intrinsic spin of a particle (angular momentum not due to the orbital motion) to the particle statistics it obeys. In units of the reduced Planck constant ''ħ'', all particles that ...

entirely based only on

first principle In philosophy and science, a first principle is a basic proposition or assumption that cannot be deduced from any other proposition or assumption. First principles in philosophy are from First Cause attitudes and taught by Aristotelians, and nuan ...

s. Doplicher and Roberts also proved a reconstruction theorem for the algebra of

quantum fields 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 an ...

and the compact group of global internal symmetries from the algebra of the observables. In other collaborations, Doplicher studied the local aspects of superselection rules. After introducing the split-property, he derived exact

current algebra Certain commutation relations among the current density operators in quantum field theories define an infinite-dimensional Lie algebra called a current algebra. Mathematically these are Lie algebras consisting of smooth maps from a manifold into a ...

s and a weak form of a quantum

Noether theorem Noether's theorem or Noether's first theorem states that every differentiable symmetry of the action of a physical system with conservative forces has a corresponding conservation law. The theorem was proven by mathematician Emmy Noether i ...

. Later in his career, Doplicher dealt with the mathematical foundations of quantum gravity in terms of the quantum structure of space-time at the Planck scale. He also addressed the problem of measurement in

local quantum physics Algebraic quantum field theory (AQFT) is an application to local quantum physics of C*-algebra theory. Also referred to as the Haag–Kastler axiomatic framework for quantum field theory, because it was introduced by . The axioms are stated in term ...

. He is author of the first article of the first number of the scientific journal ''

Communications in Mathematical Physics ''Communications in Mathematical Physics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Springer. The journal publishes papers in all fields of mathematical physics, but focuses particularly in analysis related to condensed matter physics, st ...

''.

Honors and awards

Doplicher was an Invited Speaker at the

International Congress of Mathematicians The International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) is the largest conference for the topic of mathematics. It meets once every four years, hosted by the International Mathematical Union (IMU). The Fields Medals, the Nevanlinna Prize (to be rename ...

in Kyoto in 1990. He was awarded in 2004 the

Humboldt Prize The Humboldt Prize, the Humboldt-Forschungspreis in German, also known as the Humboldt Research Award, is an award given by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany to internationally renowned scientists and scholars who work outside of G ...

and in 2011 the Italian National Prize ''Presidente della Repubblica'' of the

Lincei National Academy The Accademia dei Lincei (; literally the "Academy of the Lynx-Eyed", but anglicised as the Lincean Academy) is one of the oldest and most prestigious European scientific institutions, located at the Palazzo Corsini on the Via della Lungara in Rom ...

. In 2013 he was elected a Fellow of the

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings ...

and in 2019 a member of the

Academia Europaea The Academia Europaea is a pan-European Academy of Humanities, Letters, Law, and Sciences. The Academia was founded in 1988 as a functioning Europe-wide Academy that encompasses all fields of scholarly inquiry. It acts as co-ordinator of Europea ...

Selected publications

Scientific

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Others

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References

External links

* . * . * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Doplicher, Sergio Mathematical physicists 20th-century Italian physicists 20th-century Italian mathematicians 21st-century Italian mathematicians Academic staff of the Sapienza University of Rome Fellows of the American Mathematical Society Members of Academia Europaea Humboldt Research Award recipients 1940 births Living people 21st-century Italian physicists