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Lev Landau

Physics

Lev Landau (1908-1968) was a Soviet theoretical physicist awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1962 for his theory explaining the superfluid behavior of liquid helium at extremely low temperatures. Working for most of his career at the Institute for Physical Problems in Moscow, he made foundational contributions across condensed matter physics, quantum mechanics, nuclear physics and astrophysics, and with Evgeny Lifshitz began the multi-volume Course of Theoretical Physics that trained generations of physicists worldwide. In 1938, during the Stalinist purges, he was arrested and imprisoned for roughly a year on a fabricated charge before Pyotr Kapitsa intervened directly with the Soviet government to secure his release. A near fatal car accident in 1962, shortly before his Nobel Prize was announced, left him unable to continue active research for the rest of his life.

Facts
Birth YearSourced to the subject's own account
1908 1
Birth DateSourced to the subject's own account
1908-01-22 1
Death DateSourced to the subject's own account
1968-04-01 1
Death YearSourced to the subject's own account
1968 1
FieldSourced to the subject's own account
Theoretical Physics 1
NationalitySourced to the subject's own account
Soviet 1
Notable WorkSourced to the subject's own account
1962 Nobel Prize in Physics for the mathematical theory of superfluidity of liquid helium II 1
BirthplaceSourced to the subject's own account
Baku, Russian Empire (now Azerbaijan) 1
Sources
1. Lev Landau (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', Life > Early years section, first sentence (birth year)
    Landau was born on 22 January 1908 to Jewish parents in Baku, the Russian Empire, in what is now Azerbaijan.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', Life > Early years section, first sentence (birth date)
    Landau was born on 22 January 1908 to Jewish parents in Baku, the Russian Empire, in what is now Azerbaijan.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', Life > Early years section, first sentence (birthplace)
    Landau was born on 22 January 1908 to Jewish parents in Baku, the Russian Empire, in what is now Azerbaijan.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', Death section, first sentence (death year)
    Landau died on 1 April 1968, aged 60, from complications of the injuries sustained in the car accident six years earlier.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', Death section, first sentence (death date)
    Landau died on 1 April 1968, aged 60, from complications of the injuries sustained in the car accident six years earlier.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', lead paragraph, first sentence (nationality)
    Lev Davidovich Landau (Russian: Лев Дави́дович Ланда́у; 22 January 1908-1 April 1968) was a Soviet physicist who made fundamental contributions to many areas of theoretical physics.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', lead paragraph, first sentence (field)
    Lev Davidovich Landau (Russian: Лев Дави́дович Ланда́у; 22 January 1908-1 April 1968) was a Soviet physicist who made fundamental contributions to many areas of theoretical physics.
  • Wikipedia article 'Lev Landau', lead paragraph, final sentence (notable work)
    He received the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physics for his development of a mathematical theory of superfluidity that accounts for the properties of liquid helium II at a temperature below 2.17 K (−270.98 °C).
View the Source
Lev Davidovich Landau (National MagLab, Magnet Academy)
biography page, Nobel Prize paragraph
Quote, biography page, Nobel Prize paragraph
In 1962, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics in recognition of his work on condensed matter (matter in the solid or liquid state).
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