Miguel Ángel Virasoro (physicist) facts for kids

Miguel Ángel Virasoro (born May 9, 1940, died July 23, 2021) was a brilliant scientist from Argentina. He was a theoretical physicist, which means he used math and ideas to understand how the universe works. He also became an Italian citizen.

Virasoro worked in many countries, including Argentina, Israel, the United States, and France. However, he spent most of his career in Italy at La Sapienza University of Rome. He was known for his important work in string theory, which is a way to describe tiny particles. He also studied spin glasses and other areas of mathematical and statistical physics. Many ideas in physics are named after him, like the Virasoro algebra.

About Miguel Ángel Virasoro

Early Life in Argentina

Miguel Ángel Virasoro was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on May 9, 1940. He had the same name as his father, who was a famous philosopher.

Young Miguel studied physics at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA). He started in 1958 and finished his PhD in 1966.

Moving for Research

In 1966, Virasoro left Argentina. This was because of a difficult time when the military government took control. Many students and teachers at UBA were treated badly.

After leaving, Virasoro worked as a researcher in different places. He was at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel until 1968. Then he moved to the United States. He worked at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the University of California, Berkeley.

Back to Argentina and Europe

Virasoro returned to Argentina in 1970 when the military government ended. In 1971, he became a professor at UBA, his old university. He stayed there until 1975.

In 1976, another military government took power in Argentina. This meant Virasoro could not go back home after a year of research in the United States. So, he moved to Europe.

He first worked in Paris, France, at the École normale supérieure. Then, in 1977, he moved to Italy. He became a professor at the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare in Turin.

Career in Italy

In 1981, Virasoro moved to La Sapienza University of Rome. He stayed there for 30 years. He taught classes on electromagnetism and other topics. He also did research in mathematical physics, string theory, and statistical mechanics.

From 1995 to 2002, he was also a director. He led the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy.

Later Years and Awards

In his later years, Virasoro received many awards for his work. In 1987, he won a Guggenheim Fellowship. In 1993, he received the Rammal Award.

In 2009, he won the Enrico Fermi Prize. He shared it with another physicist, Dimitri Nanopoulos. They won for discovering an important math idea called an "infinite-dimensional algebra." This idea is key for building string theories.

In 2020, he received the Dirac Medal from the ICTP. He shared this award with André Neveu and Pierre Ramond. They were honored for their early work on string theory. Their ideas brought new types of symmetry into physics.

From 2011 until he passed away, Virasoro was an honorary professor. He taught at the National University of General Sarmiento in Argentina. Miguel Ángel Virasoro died on July 23, 2021, at the age of 81.

Virasoro's Discoveries

Understanding String Theory

Much of Virasoro's early work helped create string theory. This is a part of physics that tries to explain the smallest parts of the universe. It suggests that tiny particles are actually like vibrating strings.

In 1968, his friend Gabriele Veneziano found a formula. It described how "open strings" (strings with ends) interact. A year later, Virasoro made this idea even bigger. He found a formula, called the Virasoro-Shapiro amplitude. This formula described how "closed strings" (strings that form loops) interact. At first, scientists didn't know these formulas were about strings. They only realized it later.

Soon after, Virasoro introduced something called the Virasoro algebra. This is a special kind of math tool. It helps describe the symmetry of a string's "worldsheet." A worldsheet is like the path a string makes as it moves through space and time. There's also a "super Virasoro algebra" for special types of strings called "superstrings."

Many math ideas are named after Virasoro. These include the Virasoro vertex operator algebra and the Virasoro group.

Studying Spin Glasses

While working in Italy, Virasoro also studied spin glasses. These are special materials that act like magnets but in a very complex way. He worked with other scientists, Giorgio Parisi and Marc Mézard. They discovered how spin glasses are organized at very cold temperatures.

See also

In Spanish: Miguel Ángel Virasoro para niños