International prize for physicist

A leading scientist who has close links with the University of St Andrews has been awarded a major prize for his world-leading work on the development of superconductors.

Professor JC Seamus Davis of Cornell University, a part-time Distinguished Research Professor at St Andrews, has shared the 2009 Kamerlingh Onnes Prize for Superconductivity.

Superconductivity is one of the most striking of all natural phenomena.  A superconductor carries electrical current without heating up, and superconducting cables offer long-term promise to help with the world’s energy crisis.

Professor Davis, a regular visitor to St Andrews, is making profound contributions to understanding how modern superconductors work.

The Kamerlingh Onnes Prize, named after the original discoverer of superconductivity, is a major international prize awarded biennially at the Materials and Mechanisms of Superconductivity conference, which this year takes place in Tokyo, Japan, in September.

Professor Stephen Lee, Head of the School of Physics & Astronomy, commented, “With physics becoming an international endeavour, we particularly value these formalised international collaborations.  Professor Davis visits us regularly for scientific discussions, and hosts several St Andrews graduate students and research fellows to perform work in his laboratories in Cornell.  We congratulate him warmly on this well-deserved recognition of his world-leading research.”

ENDS

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Ref: physics prize 020709
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