Ivar Giaever (, ; born April 5, 1929) is a Norwegian-American solid-state and

biophysicist Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study biological phenomena. Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization, from molecular to organismic and populations ...

who shared the 1973

Nobel Prize in Physics The Nobel Prize in Physics () is an annual award given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for those who have made the most outstanding contributions to mankind in the field of physics. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the ...

with Leo Esaki and

Brian Josephson Brian David Josephson (born 4 January 1940) is a Welsh condensed matter physicist and a professor emeritus of physics at the University of Cambridge. Best known for his pioneering work on superconductivity and quantum tunnelling, he shared the 1 ...

. One half of the prize was awarded jointly to Esaki and Giaever "for their experimental discoveries regarding tunneling phenomena in

semiconductor A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. Its conductivity can be modified by adding impurities (" doping") to its crystal structure. When two regions with different doping level ...

s and superconductors, respectively". In 1975, he was elected as a member into the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academ ...

for contributions in the discovery and elaboration of electron tunneling into superconductors. Giaever is a

professor emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". ...

at the

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...

and the president of the company Applied Biophysics.

Early life and education

Giaever earned a degree in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

from the

Norwegian Institute of Technology The Norwegian Institute of Technology ( Norwegian: ''Norges tekniske høgskole'', NTH) was a science institute in Trondheim, Norway. It was established in 1910, and existed as an independent technical university for 58 years, after which it was ...

in Trondheim in 1952. In 1954, he emigrated from Norway to Canada, where he was employed by the Canadian division of

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

. He moved to the United States four years later, joining General Electric's Corporate Research and Development Center in Schenectady, New York, in 1958. He has lived in

Niskayuna, New York Niskayuna is a town in Schenectady County, New York, United States. The population was 23,278 at the 2020 census. The town is located in the southeast part of the county, east of the city of Schenectady, and is the easternmost town in the county. ...

, since then, taking up US citizenship in 1964. While working for General Electric, Giaever earned a Ph.D. degree at the

in 1964.

The Nobel Prize

The work that led to Giaever's Nobel Prize was performed at General Electric in 1960. Following on Esaki's discovery of

electron The electron (, or in nuclear reactions) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary charge, elementary electric charge. It is a fundamental particle that comprises the ordinary matter that makes up the universe, along with up qua ...

tunnelling in

s in 1958, Giaever showed that tunnelling also took place in superconductors, demonstrating tunnelling through a very thin layer of

oxide An oxide () is a chemical compound containing at least one oxygen atom and one other element in its chemical formula. "Oxide" itself is the dianion (anion bearing a net charge of −2) of oxygen, an O2− ion with oxygen in the oxidation st ...

surrounded on both sides by

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

in a superconducting or normal state. Giaever's experiments demonstrated the existence of an energy gap in superconductors, one of the most important predictions of the

BCS theory In physics, the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) theory (named after John Bardeen, Leon Cooper, and John Robert Schrieffer) is the first microscopic theory of superconductivity since Heike Kamerlingh Onnes's 1911 discovery. The theory descr ...

of superconductivity, which had been developed in 1957. Giaever's experimental demonstration of tunnelling in superconductors stimulated the theoretical physicist Brian Josephson to work on the phenomenon, leading to his prediction of the

Josephson effect In physics, the Josephson effect is a phenomenon that occurs when two superconductors are placed in proximity, with some barrier or restriction between them. The effect is named after the British physicist Brian Josephson, who predicted in 1962 ...

in 1962. Esaki and Giaever shared half of the 1973 Nobel Prize, and Josephson received the other half. Giaever's research later in his career was mainly in the field of

biophysics Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study biological phenomena. Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization, from molecular to organismic and populations ...

. In 1969, he researched biophysics for a year as a fellow at Clare Hall,

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, through a Guggenheim Fellowship, and he continued to work in this area after he returned to the US. He has co-signed a letter from over 70 Nobel laureate scientists to the Louisiana Legislature supporting the repeal of

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

’s

Louisiana Science Education Act The Louisiana Science Education Act, Act 473 (SB733) of 2008 is a controversial anti-evolution law passed by the Louisiana Legislature on June 11, 2008 and signed into law by Governor Bobby Jindal on June 25. The act allows public school teache ...

Other prizes

In addition to the Nobel Prize, he has also been awarded the Oliver E. Buckley Prize by 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 ...

in 1965, the Golden Plate Award of the

American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a nonprofit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest-achieving people in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet one ano ...

in 1966, and the Zworykin Award by the

in 1975. In 1985, he was awarded an

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

, doctor honoris causa, at the

, later part of

Norwegian University of Science and Technology The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU; ) is a public university, public research university in Norway and the largest in terms of enrollment. The university's headquarters is located in Trondheim (city), Trondheim, with region ...

. He is a member of the

Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway. History The Royal Frederick University in Christiania was establis ...

Global warming

Giaever has repeatedly professed skepticism of

global warming Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...

, calling it a "new religion", however he has presented no strong evidence to support this position. On 13 September 2011, he resigned from the

over its official position. Giaever is currently a science advisor with American

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

and

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

The Heartland Institute The Heartland Institute is an American conservative and libertarian 501(c)(3) nonprofit public policy think tank known for its rejection of both the scientific consensus on climate change and the negative health impacts of smoking. Founded ...

Personal life

Giaever was married to his childhood sweetheart Inger (née Skramstad) from 1952 until her death on September 12, 2023 at the age of 94. They have four children. Giaever is an atheist.

Selected publications

* * * * Giaever, Ivar (2016). ''"I Am The Smartest Man I Know": A Nobel Laureate's Difficult Journey'', World Scientific. .

References

External links

Interview with Professor Ivar Giaever
from th
Official Nobel Prize Website
* including the Nobel Lecture, December 12, 1973 ''Electron Tunneling and Superconductivity''
Family genealogy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giaever, Ivar 1929 births Living people Norwegian physicists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Nobel laureates in Physics American atheists American Nobel laureates Norwegian Nobel laureates Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute faculty Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni Fellows of Clare Hall, Cambridge Alumni of Clare Hall, Cambridge Norwegian Institute of Technology alumni Hamar Katedralskole alumni Norwegian emigrants to the United States Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Engineers from Bergen Norwegian atheists General Electric people Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters Semiconductor physicists Condensed matter physicists American biophysicists Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize winners Fellows of the American Physical Society