Michael Ellis Fisher (3 September 1931 – 26 November 2021) was an English physicist, as well as chemist and mathematician, known for his many seminal contributions to

statistical physics In physics, statistical mechanics is a mathematical framework that applies statistical methods and probability theory to large assemblies of microscopic entities. Sometimes called statistical physics or statistical thermodynamics, its applicati ...

, including but not restricted to the theory of

phase transition In physics, chemistry, and other related fields like biology, a phase transition (or phase change) is the physical process of transition between one state of a medium and another. Commonly the term is used to refer to changes among the basic Sta ...

s and critical phenomena. He was the Horace White Professor of Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. Later he moved to the University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences, where he was University System of Maryland Regents Professor, a Distinguished University Professor and Distinguished Scholar-Teacher.

Academic background

Michael E. Fisher received his BSc from

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

in 1951, where he also earned a PhD in physics in 1957, studying analogue computing under Donald MacCrimmon MacKay. He was appointed to the faculty as a lecturer the following year, becoming a full professor in 1965. In 1966 he moved to

where he became professor of chemistry, physics, and mathematics, chairing the chemistry department from 1975 to 1978. In 1971, he became a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

. In 1973, he and Jack Kiefer were the first two Cornell faculty elected as Horace White Professors. Fisher was elected Secretary of the Cornell University Senate. In 1983, he was elected a foreign associate of the

United States National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

, chemistry section, as he had remained a citizen of the United Kingdom. Since 1987 he was at the Institute for Physical Science and Technology, which is part of the University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences. He retired in 2012. Fisher lived in Ithaca, N.Y., and subsequently in Maryland, with his wife Sorrel. They had four children. Two of them are also theoretical physicists: Daniel S. Fisher is professor of Applied Physics at

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

, while

Matthew P. A. Fisher Matthew P. A. Fisher is an American Theoretical physics, theoretical physicist and professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and is known for several major contributions to condensed matter physics. He completed his bac ...

is professor of Physics at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

Wolf Prize

Fisher together with Kenneth G. Wilson and Leo Kadanoff won the

Wolf Prize The Wolf Prize is an international award granted in Israel, that has been presented most years since 1978 to living scientists and artists for "achievements in the interest of mankind and friendly relations among people ... irrespective of natio ...

in 1980. The prize was awarded with the following comment:"Professor Michael E. Fisher has been an extraordinarily productive scientist, and one still at the height of his powers and creativity. Fisher's major contributions have been in equilibrium statistical mechanics, and have spanned the full range of that subject. He was mainly responsible for bringing together, and teaching a common language to chemists and physicists working on diverse problems of phase transitions."

Boltzmann Medal

In 1983, Fisher was awarded the Boltzmann Medal "for his many illuminating contributions to phase transitions and critical phenomena during the past 25 years"

Lars Onsager Prize

Fisher won the Lars Onsager Prize in 1995 "for his numerous and seminal contributions to statistical mechanics, including but not restricted to the theory of phase transitions and critical phenomena, scaling laws, critical exponents, finite size effects, and the application of the

renormalization group In theoretical physics, the renormalization group (RG) is a formal apparatus that allows systematic investigation of the changes of a physical system as viewed at different scales. In particle physics, it reflects the changes in the underlying p ...

to many of the above problems" (official laudatio).

Award and honours

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

(1970) * Irving Langmuir Prize of 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 ...

(1971) * Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

(1979) * Guthrie Medal and Prize from the

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based not-for-profit learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, physics research, research and applied physics, application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide ...

(1980) *

(1980) * Michelson–Morley Award from

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a Private university, private research university in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1967 by a merger between Western Reserve University and the Case Institute of Technology. Case ...

(1982) * Boltzmann Medal of the

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP; ) is an international non-governmental organization whose mission is to assist in the worldwide development of physics, to foster international cooperation in physics, and to help in the ...

(1983) * Foreign associate of the

(1983) *

NAS Award for Scientific Reviewing The NAS Award for Scientific Reviewing is awarded by the United States National Academy of Sciences, U.S. National Academy of Sciences (NAS) "to recognize authors whose reviews have synthesized extensive and difficult material, rendering a signific ...

of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

(1983) * Member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

(1993) * Lars Onsager Prize of

(1995) *

Royal Medal The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal and The King's Medal (depending on the gender of the monarch at the time of the award), is a silver-gilt medal, of which three are awarded each year by the Royal Society. Two are given for "the mo ...

in physics (2005): * 2009 BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Basic Sciences (co-winner with Richard Zare); see * 2015 Rudranath Capildeo Prize for Applied Sciences and Technology-Gold, awarded by the Trinidad and Tobago's National Institute of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (NIHERST)

References

Sources

* N. David Mermin, "My Life with Fisher", ''J. Stat. Phys.'' 110, 467–473 (2003)
see also

External links

Homepage at University of MarylandWolf prize citationLars Onsager prize citationBBVA award citation
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Michael 1931 births 2021 deaths Alumni of King's College London Fellows of King's College London Academics of King's College London Cornell University faculty Fellows of the Royal Society British physicists Wolf Prize in Physics laureates University of Maryland, College Park faculty Royal Medal winners Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences People from Siparia region Members of the American Philosophical Society Recipients of the Boltzmann Medal