Yakir Aharonov
Born	(1932-08-28) 28 August 1932 (age 90) Haifa, British Mandate of Palestine
Nationality	Israeli
Alma mater	Technion Bristol University
Known for	Aharonov–Bohm effect Aharonov–Casher effect Weak values Two-state vector formalism
Awards	National Medal of Science (2009) Wolf Prize (1998) Elliott Cresson Medal (1991)
Scientific career
Fields	Physicist
Institutions	Perimeter Institute Chapman University Tel Aviv University University of South Carolina George Mason University Brandeis University Yeshiva University
Doctoral advisor	David Bohm
Doctoral students	David Albert Avshalom Elitzur Lev Vaidman Sandu Popescu
Notes
He is the uncle of Dorit Aharonov.

Yakir Aharonov (Hebrew: יקיר אהרונוב; born August 28, 1932)^[1] is an Israeli physicist specializing in quantum physics. He has been a Professor of Theoretical Physics and the James J. Farley Professor of Natural Philosophy at Chapman University in California since 2008.^[2] He is also a distinguished professor in the Perimeter Institute^[3] and a professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University in Israel. He is president of the IYAR, The Israeli Institute for Advanced Research.^[4]

Biography

Yakir Aharonov was born in Haifa. He received his undergraduate education at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, graduating with a BSc in 1956. He continued his graduate studies at the Technion and then moved to Bristol University, UK together with his doctoral advisor David Bohm, receiving a Ph.D. degree in 1960. Aharonov later taught at the Brandeis University from 1960–61 and the Yeshiva University from 1964–67, both in the United States.^[2]

Academic career

His research interests are nonlocal and topological effects in quantum mechanics, quantum field theories and interpretations of quantum mechanics. In 1959, he and David Bohm proposed the Aharonov–Bohm effect for which he co-received the 1998 Wolf Prize.

In 1988, Aharonov et al. published their theory of weak values.^{[citation needed]} This work was motivated by Aharonov's long-time quest to experimentally verify his theory that apparently random events in quantum mechanics are caused by events in the future (two-state vector formalism). Verifying a present effect of a future cause requires a measurement, which would ordinarily destroy coherence and ruin the experiment. He and his colleagues claim that they were able to use weak measurements and verify the present effect of the future cause.^{[citation needed]} Working with Aharon Casher, they predicted the Aharonov–Casher effect, the electrodynamic dual of the Aharonov–Bohm effect with magnetic dipoles and charges.^[2]

Timeline

• 1960–1961: Research Associate, Brandeis University
• 1961–1964: Assistant Professor, Yeshiva University
• 1964–1967: Associate Professor, Yeshiva University
• 1967–1973: Joint professorship at Tel Aviv University and Yeshiva University
• 1973–2006: Joint professorship at Tel Aviv University and the University of South Carolina
• 2006–2008: Professor at George Mason University
• 2008–present: Professor of Theoretical Physics and the James J. Farley Professor of Natural Philosophy at Chapman University

Awards and recognition

• 1978: Elected Fellow of the American Physical Society^[5]
• 1984: Weizmann Prize in Physics
• 1984: Rothschild Prize in Physics^[2]
• 1989: Israel Prize in exact science^[6][2]
• 1990: Elected to the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities
• 1991: The Elliott Cresson Medal – The Franklin Institute^[2]
• 1992: Honorary Doctor of Science, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
• 1993: Elected Member of the National Academy of Sciences, USA
• 1993: Honorary Doctor of Science, University of South Carolina, USA
• 1995: Hewlett–Packard Europhysics Prize
• 1997: Honorary Doctor of Science, Bristol University, UK
• 1998: Wolf Prize in Physics^[7][2]
• 1999: Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
• 2006: EMET Prize in Exact Science
• In 2009, the information service Thomson Reuters named Aharonov as leading candidate for the 2009 Nobel prize in physics, based on his work's influence on quantum physics.^[8]
• 2010: National Medal of Science (2009), awarded and presented by President Barack Obama^[9]