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The Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP) is pleased to announce that the 2008 CAP Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Physics is awarded to Louis Taillefer, Universite de Sherbrooke, in recognition of for his strong leadership in condensed matter research, resulting in the discovery of multi-component superconductivity, the first observed violation of the Wiedemann-Franz universal ratio of charge and heat conductivities, and an experimental breakthrough in high-temperature superconductors, where quantum oscillations were discovered. announcement
The Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP) is pleased to announce that the 2008 CAP Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Physics is awarded to Dr. Louis Taillefer, University of Sherbrooke, for major discoveries in the field of quantum materials, in particular those in which electron correlations lead to novel forms of superconductivity.
He pioneered the use of heat transport at ultra-low temperatures to determine the symmetry of the superconducting state and probe critical behaviour at quantum phase transitions. He was the first to directly measure the giant electron masses of heavy-fermion metals, via quantum oscillations. He discovered the first instance of multi-component superconductivity and the first violation of the Wiedemann-Franz law – the physical law that determines the universal ratio of charge and heat conductivities of a metal at absolute zero.
His current research interests are in high-temperature superconductivity and quantum phase transitions. His research team at Sherbrooke has recently made major experimental breakthroughs, including the first observation of quantum oscillations in a high-temperature superconductor and the first instance of anisotropic quantum criticality in a metal. These discoveries are expected to profoundly transform their respective fields.
Taillefer has received numerous awards, including an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, an E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship from NSERC, and the Prix Marie-Victorin from the Québec Government. For the past ten years, Taillefer has been Director of the Quantum Materials Program of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), a research network that brings together some 50 Canadian and international scientists in a world-renowned collaborative effort. nominator citation
Louis Taillefer will receive the 2008 CAP Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Physics during the CAP's awards banquet to be held at on 0000-00-00.