Gerard 't Hooft facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gerard 't Hooft
't Hooft in November 2008
Born	(1946-07-05) July 5, 1946 (age 78) Den Helder, Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch
Alma mater	Utrecht University
Known for	Quantum field theory Quantum gravity 't Hooft condition 't Hooft–Polyakov monopole 't Hooft symbol 't Hooft loop Feynman–'t Hooft gauge Black hole complementarity Minimal subtraction scheme Holographic principle Renormalization of Yang–Mills theory Dimensional regularization Renormalon 1/N expansion
Awards	Heineman Prize (1979) Wolf Prize (1981) Lorentz Medal (1986) Spinoza Prize (1995) Franklin Medal (1995) Nobel Prize in Physics (1999) High Energy and Particle Physics Prize (1999) Lomonosov Gold Medal (2010)
Scientific career
Fields	Theoretical physics
Institutions	Utrecht University
Doctoral advisor	Martinus J. G. Veltman
Doctoral students	Robbert Dijkgraaf Herman Verlinde Max Welling

Gerardus "Gerard" 't Hooft (born July 5, 1946) is a Dutch theoretical physicist. He is a professor at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. In 1999, he shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with his teacher, Martinus J. G. Veltman. They won for their work on understanding the tiny particles that make up everything.

His research focuses on how particles interact. He also studies black holes and the rules of quantum mechanics. His important ideas include showing how certain theories can be "renormalized." This means making sense of calculations that would otherwise give infinite answers. He also helped develop the holographic principle, which suggests our universe might be like a hologram.

About Gerard 't Hooft

Early Life and Family

Gerard 't Hooft was born in Den Helder, Netherlands, on July 5, 1946. He grew up in The Hague. He was the middle child in his family. His family had many scholars and scientists. His great-uncle, Frits Zernike, also won a Nobel Prize.

From a young age, Gerard loved science. When his teacher asked what he wanted to be, he said, "a man who knows everything." This showed his strong desire to learn.

School Days

Gerard went to the Dalton Lyceum for high school. This school used a special teaching method that helped him learn well. He was very good at science and math. When he was 16, he won a silver medal in the Dutch Math Olympiad.

After high school in 1964, Gerard started studying physics at Utrecht University. He chose Utrecht because his uncle was a professor there. His father wanted him to do more than just study. So, Gerard joined a student group. He was a coxswain (the person who steers) for their rowing club. He also helped organize a big meeting for science students.

University Research

During his studies, Gerard decided to focus on elementary particles. These are the smallest known building blocks of the universe. In 1968, he began working with Professor Martinus Veltman. Veltman was studying something called Yang–Mills theory. At the time, many thought these theories were too hard to work with.

Gerard's first paper was published in 1971. In it, he showed how to make sense of calculations for Yang–Mills fields. This was a big step forward. Veltman was very excited because it solved a problem he had been working on.

They worked closely together and developed a new method called "dimensional regularization." Soon, Gerard published another paper. This paper showed that Yang–Mills theories could be used to describe particles with mass. This discovery brought them worldwide attention. It also led to them winning the 1999 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Gerard finished his PhD in 1972. His research was about how to make calculations work for Yang–Mills fields. In the same year, he married Albertha A. Schik, who was studying medicine.

Working as a Scientist

Gerard 't Hooft at Harvard University

After getting his PhD, Gerard went to CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. CERN is a famous place where scientists study tiny particles. He continued to work on his methods for Yang–Mills theories with Veltman.

He became interested in how these theories could explain the strong interaction. This is one of the four basic forces of nature. His calculations showed that this theory could explain how particles behave when they are very close together. This was a new idea at the time.

Gerard shared his findings at a conference in 1972. However, he did not publish them right away. Other scientists later discovered and published similar results. They won the Nobel Prize for it in 2004.

In 1974, 't Hooft returned to Utrecht University. He became an assistant professor. He also spent time as a visiting professor at Stanford and Harvard universities in the United States. He became a full professor at Utrecht in 1978. In 2011, Utrecht University named him a "Distinguished Professor."

Personal Life

Gerard 't Hooft is married to Albertha Schik, also known as Betteke. They have two daughters together.

Awards and Recognitions

In 1999, Gerard 't Hooft received the Nobel Prize in Physics. He shared it with his former teacher, Martinus Veltman. They were honored for their work on understanding how particles interact using quantum physics.

Before the Nobel Prize, he had already received many other important awards.

• In 1981, he won the Wolf Prize, which is a very respected award in physics.
• Five years later, he received the Lorentz Medal. This medal is given every four years for major contributions to theoretical physics.
• In 1995, he was one of the first people to receive the Spinoza Prize. This is the highest award for scientists in the Netherlands.
• He also received the Franklin Medal in 1995.

After his Nobel Prize, 't Hooft received many more honors. He was made a commander in the Order of the Netherlands Lion. He also became an officer in the French Legion of Honor. An asteroid was named after him, called 9491 Thooft. He even wrote a "constitution" for its future inhabitants!

He is a member of many science academies around the world. These include the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American United States National Academy of Sciences.

His Scientific Discoveries

Gerard 't Hooft's research covers three main areas:

• Understanding how tiny particles interact (called "gauge theories").
• Studying quantum gravity and black holes.
• Looking at the basic rules of quantum mechanics.

Understanding Particle Interactions

't Hooft is most famous for his work on gauge theories. His PhD research showed how to "renormalize" Yang–Mills theories. This was a huge step forward in particle physics. It allowed scientists to make accurate calculations about how particles behave. For this work, he and Veltman invented a method called "dimensional regularization."

He also studied the strong interaction, which holds atomic nuclei together. This led him to discover that certain theories become simpler in a special way. This idea has been important for understanding string theory. He also found that some theories predict the existence of "magnetic monopoles." These are like magnets with only one pole (north or south), which are very rare.

Black Holes and Gravity

When 't Hooft was at CERN, he and Veltman explored how their methods could be used to study gravity. They wanted to understand how to combine gravity with quantum mechanics.

Later, 't Hooft became very interested in black holes. When Stephen Hawking discovered that black holes give off radiation, it seemed to create a problem for quantum mechanics. This problem is called the "black hole information paradox." 't Hooft believed there had to be a solution.

He suggested that near a black hole, quantum fields might be described by a simpler theory. This idea led to the holographic principle. This principle suggests that all the information about a 3D space might be stored on a 2D surface, like a hologram.

The Nature of Quantum Mechanics

Gerard 't Hooft has unique ideas about how to understand quantum mechanics. He thinks that there might be a hidden, deterministic explanation for how quantum particles behave. This means that things might not be as random as they seem at the quantum level. He has written a book about these ideas.

See also

In Spanish: Gerardus 't Hooft para niños