The Swedish Academy of Sciences announced that three scientists from the United States have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the year 2023. They are: Tunisian scientist Monji El-Baoundi, a professor at MIT University, Lewis Bruce, a professor at Columbia University, and Alexei Ekimov from Nanocrystals Technology in New York.
The award was given to the three scientists for their discovery and development in the scientific field of so-called “quantum dots”, which are semiconductor nanocrystals with multiple applications, or in the words of the academy’s press release: they are nanoparticles so small that their size determines their properties.
These tiny configurations of nanotechnology spread their light from TV screens to LED lights, and can even guide surgeons when they remove tumor tissue, for a wide range of applications.
To explain the matter, the press release says that everyone who studies chemistry knows that any element’s properties are governed by the number of electrons in it. However, when matter shrinks to nanoscale dimensions, quantum phenomena arise that are governed by the size of the substance.
The 2023 Nobel Prize laureates in Chemistry have succeeded in producing molecules so small that their properties are determined by quantum phenomena. These particles, called quantum dots, now have important applications in nanotechnology.
Alexei Ekimov from Nanocrystals Technology, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the year 2023 (Russian press)
Development of quantum effects
Physicists have long known that quantum effects could arise in nanoparticles, but at the time it was nearly impossible to sculpt to nanoscale dimensions.
Therefore, it was not possible to apply this knowledge practically. However, in the early 1980s, Alexei Ekimov succeeded in creating size-dependent quantum effects in colored glass. The color came from copper chloride nanoparticles. Ekimov demonstrated that particle size affects the color of the glass via quantum effects.
A few years later, Louis Bruce became the first scientist to demonstrate size-dependent quantum effects in molecules that accumulate freely in liquids.
In 1993, Mengi El-Baoundy revolutionized the chemical production of quantum dots, resulting in nearly perfect molecules, such high quality was essential for their use in applications.
Professor at Columbia University, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the year 2023, Louis Bruce (Reuters)
Thanks to the founding efforts of these scientists, quantum dots now light up computer screens, television screens, and other devices. Thus, quantum dots bring the greatest benefit to humanity, and researchers believe that they could contribute in the future to the development of flexible electronics, small sensors, thinner solar cells, and encrypted quantum communications. .
Facts about Nobel Prize in Chemistry
It is noteworthy that 114 Nobel Prizes in Chemistry have been awarded since 1901. 25 of them were shared between two winners, and 8 women have received the award so far, and two people have won it twice: Frederick Sanger and Barry Sharpless.
The youngest recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry ever was Frédéric Joliot, who received it in 1935 at the age of 35, while the oldest recipient of the award was 97 years old, John B. Goodenough, who is the oldest Nobel Prize winner ever.
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2023-10-04 12:10:02
