
Erwin L. Hahn
Wolf Prize Laureate in Physics 1983/4

The Physics Prize Committee for 1983/4 has unanimously chosen the following three candidates to equally share the award for their distinct pioneering contributions in the field of experimental condensed matter physics: Sir Peter Hirsch ,Erwin L. Hahn and Theodore H. Maiman.
Erwin L. Hahn
University of California
Berkeley, California, USA
“for his discovery of nuclear spin echoes and for the phenomenon of self-induced transparency.”
Professor Erwin L. Hahn’s research demonstrated that a collection of spinning nuclei could retain a coherent memory for a period of time and made it possible to extend the use of magnetic resonance techniques for a variety of purposes in science, engineering and medicine including the storage and retrieva l of information. Optical self-induced transparency is an outstanding example of nonlinear interaction between matter and high intensity light pulses. The experiments of Hahn elucidate concepts of statistical mechanics and collective excitations in complex (many-body) systems.
