Bryan Ronald Webber, FRS,

FInstP Fellowship of the Institute of Physics (FInstP) is "the highest level of membership attainable" by physicists who are members of the Institute of Physics (IoP), "for those with a degree in physics or related subject (or equivalent knowledge gained ...

(born 25 July 1943) 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 ca ...

and academic. He was a Fellow of

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican m ...

from 1973 to 2010, and Professor of Theoretical Physics 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 ...

from 1999 to 2010. He has been awarded the

Dirac Medal The Dirac Medal is the name of four awards in the field of theoretical physics, computational chemistry, and mathematics, awarded by different organizations, named in honour of Professor Paul Dirac, one of the great theoretical physicists of the 2 ...

by the

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 Physica ...

, the

Sakurai Prize The J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics, is presented by the American Physical Society at its annual April Meeting, and honors outstanding achievement in particle physics theory. The prize consists of a monetary award ($10,000 ...

by the American Physical Society and the High Energy and Particle Physics Prize by the

European Physical Society The European Physical Society (EPS) is a non-profit organisation whose purpose is to promote physics and physicists in Europe through methods such as physics outreach. Formally established in 1968, its membership includes the national physical so ...

Early life and education

Webber was born on 25 July 1943 to Frederick Ronald Webber and Iris Evelyn Webber (née Hutchings). He was educated at Colston's School, an independent school in Bristol. He studied at

The Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...

and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1964. He then moved to California, United States, to undertake

postgraduate research Postgraduate research represents a formal area of study that is recognized by a university or institute of higher learning. By definition, the notion of “postgraduate” (United States) carries the implication that the candidate undertaking such ...

within the research group of

Luis Walter Alvarez Luis Walter Alvarez (June 13, 1911 – September 1, 1988) was an American experimental physicist, inventor, and professor who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1968 for his discovery of resonance states in particle physics using the ...

at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. He completed his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in

experimental 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) and b ...

in 1969 with a thesis titled ''A test of the

elta ELTA may mean one of the following: Broadcasting * ELTA 1 HD, the first commercial HD cable television channel in Bosnia and Herzegovina * ELTA 2, a commercial music television channel in Bosnia and Herzegovina * , a television channel in Taiwan ...

rule in leptonic decays of neutral K mesons''.

Research and career

Webber began his academic career as a

postdoctoral researcher A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to pu ...

at the

Lawrence Radiation Laboratory Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparato ...

, California. There, he researched

strong interaction The strong interaction or strong force is a fundamental interaction that confines quarks into proton, neutron, and other hadron particles. The strong interaction also binds neutrons and protons to create atomic nuclei, where it is called th ...

under Geoffrey Chew from 1969 to 1971. He then returned to England, where he joined the

as a

research assistant A research assistant (RA) is a researcher employed, often on a temporary contract, by a university, a research institute or a privately held organization, for the purpose of assisting in academic or private research. Research assistants are not in ...

. By 1973, he was the only member of staff researching

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) and ...

theory, and was appointed head of the Theoretical High Energy Physics Group at the

Cavendish Laboratory 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 name ...

. At university level, he was a demonstrator from 1973 to 1978. He was a lecturer from 1978 to 1994. He was promoted to reader in 1994. He was appointed

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". Professor ...

of Theoretical Physics in 1999. He retired in September 2010, and was appointed

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 was elected a Fellow of

in 1973. He was later made a professorial fellow. At various times, he was a tutor in physics and was a director of studies at Emmanuel College. On retirement in 2010, he was elected a Life Fellow.

Honours and awards

In 1987, Webber was elected a

Fellow of the Institute of Physics Fellowship of the Institute of Physics (FInstP) is "the highest level of membership attainable" by physicists who are members of the Institute of Physics (IoP), "for those with a degree in physics or related subject (or equivalent knowledge gaine ...

(FInstP). In 2001, he was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathematic ...

(FRS). In 2008, he was awarded the

by the

. The citation reads: In 2012, he was awarded the

J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics The J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics, is presented by the American Physical Society at its annual April Meeting, and honors outstanding achievement in particle physics#Theory, particle physics theory. The prize consists of a m ...

by the American Physical Society. The citation reads: In 2021, he was awarded the High Energy and Particle Physics Prize of the

. He received the award together with Torbjörn Sjöstrand, who was also a co-recipient of the Sakurai Prize.

Selected works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Webber, Bryan 1943 births Living people British physicists Fellows of Emmanuel College, Cambridge J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics recipients Fellows of the Institute of Physics Fellows of the Royal Society People educated at Colston's School Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford University of California, Berkeley alumni