Peter Littlewood facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter Littlewood
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| Born | May 18, 1955 |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Cambridge |
| Known for | polariton condensation, correlated oxides |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Condensed matter physics |
| Institutions | |
| Doctoral advisor | Volker Heine |
| Notable students |
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Peter Brent Littlewood, born on May 18, 1955, is a famous British physicist. He is a Professor of Physics at the University of Chicago. He used to be the 12th Director of a big science lab called Argonne National Laboratory. He also led important research groups at places like the Cavendish Laboratory and Bell Laboratories. From 2018 to 2024, he was the first chairman of the board for the Faraday Institution.
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Peter Littlewood's Career Journey
Peter Littlewood studied Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge and earned a top degree in 1976. After that, he received a special scholarship called a Kennedy Scholarship. This allowed him to work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for two years.
He returned to Cambridge in 1977 to finish his PhD. A PhD is a very high university degree that shows someone is an expert in their field.
Working at Bell Labs
In 1980, Peter Littlewood started working at Bell Labs. This was a famous research and development company. He became the head of theoretical physics research there in 1992. He continued to work as a technical staff member until 2001.
Leadership Roles in Physics
In 1997, he became a professor at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge. He led the Theory of Condensed Matter group there. From 2003 to 2004, he was a Matthias Scholar at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
In 2005, he went back to Cambridge to become the head of the Cavendish Laboratory. Then, in 2011, he was named the Associate Laboratory Director for Physical Sciences and Engineering at the Argonne National Laboratory in the United States.
On March 25, 2014, Peter Littlewood was chosen to be the director of Argonne National Laboratory. He retired from this role in January 2017 to focus on his research at the University of Chicago. Since 2022, he also works part-time at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.
Peter Littlewood holds six patents, which are special rights for inventions. He has also written over 200 articles for scientific journals. He has given more than 200 talks at science conferences and universities around the world.
Awards and Recognitions
Here are some of the honors and positions Peter Littlewood has received:
- Fellow, Royal Society of London, 2007
- Fellow, Institute of Physics, 2005
- Matthias Scholar, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2003-2004
- Consultant, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2004-
- Consultant, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, 2004-
- Fellow, Trinity College Cambridge, 1997
- Fellow, American Physical Society, 1989
- Distinguished Member of Technical Staff, AT&T Bell Laboratories, 1989
- Professeur Associé and visiting scientist, CNRS, Grenoble, 1986
- Denman Baynes Student, Clare College, Cambridge 1979-80
- Kennedy Scholar, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1976–77
- Senior Scholar, Trinity College Cambridge, 1974–76
Peter Littlewood's Research Work
Peter Littlewood's research has covered many interesting areas in physics. He has studied superconductors, which are materials that can carry electricity with no loss of energy. He looked at high-temperature superconductors, which work even at warmer temperatures.
He also researched transition metal oxides. These are special materials that have unique electrical and magnetic properties. His work also includes studying how light interacts with highly excited semiconductors.
He has used his scientific methods to help with engineering projects. This includes things like holographic storage, which is a way to store lots of information using light. He also worked on optical fibers and devices, which are used to send information using light. His research has also helped in developing new materials for particle detectors, which are used to study tiny particles.
