Haroche, Serge

Haroche, Serge, 1944–, French physicist, Ph.D. Paris VI Univ., 1971. He was a professor at Pierre and Marie Curie Univ. from 1975 to 2001 and at Paris VI Univ. from 1982 to 2001, when he joined the faculty at the Collège de France. Haroche shared the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics with David Wineland for their ground-breaking experimental methods that enable the measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems. Working independently, Haroche and Wineland found ways to study particles of matter and light without destroying them; Haroche approached the problem through the control and measurement of photons. The work of Haroche and Wineland could pave the path to creation of quantum computers, which could advance computing power far beyond that offered by present systems.

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