Philip Candelas facts for kids

Philip Candelas (born 24 October 1951) is a British physicist and mathematician. He was a professor at the University of Texas at Austin for 20 years. Later, he became the Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford until 2020. He is also a Fellow of Wadham College, Oxford.

Education and Early Career

Philip Candelas studied at Christ's College, Cambridge and Wadham College, Oxford. He began his studies in 1972 and earned his first degree in 1973. From 1975, he was a research fellow at Balliol College, Oxford. In 1976-1977, he worked at the University of Texas at Austin. In 1977, he received his DPhil (a type of PhD) from Oxford. His research was about quantum gravity, which studies gravity using the rules of quantum mechanics.

After getting his DPhil, Candelas continued his work at the University of Texas. He started as an assistant professor in 1977. He became an associate professor in 1983 and a full professor in 1989.

Key Research and Contributions

Philip Candelas is well-known for his important work in string theory. In 1985, he worked with other scientists, including Edward Witten. They showed how extra dimensions in string theory could be "curled up" into tiny shapes called Calabi–Yau manifolds. This idea helped make string theory a more complete model of the universe.

He also made important contributions to quantum field theory. This field studies how tiny particles behave and interact. Candelas researched how these fields act near black holes. He also helped us understand how quantum fields behave near boundaries. This work has uses in understanding effects like the Casimir effect.

Awards and Recognition

In 2010, Philip Candelas was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). This is a very high honor for scientists in the United Kingdom.

Personal Life

Philip Candelas holds citizenship in both the United Kingdom and the United States. He is married to Xenia de la Ossa, who is also a mathematics professor. They have two daughters.