Res Jost
Encyclopedia
Res Jost in Zurich
) was a Swiss theoretical physicist, who worked mainly in constructive quantum field theory
.
attained a doctorate ("Zur Ladungsabhängigkeit der Kernkräfte in der Vektormesontheorie ohne neutrale Mesonen“). Jost went then a half year to Niels Bohr
to Copenhagen
, where he introduced the "Jost function" into scattering theory
. Afterwards he was in Zurich an assistant of Wolfgang Pauli
. From 1949 to 1955, in 1957, 1962/3 and 1968 he was at the Institute for Advanced Study
in Princeton
, where he worked with Walter Kohn
, Joaquin Mazdak Luttinger
and Abraham Pais
among others. He was since 1955 an extraordinary professor for theoretical physics at the ETH and starting from 1959 professor. Jost created 1965 together with Rudolf Haag
the journal "Communications in Mathematical Physics “.
Jost established at the ETH a school of mathematical physics. Among his graduate students were Sergio Albeverio (b. 1939), Klaus Hepp
(b. 1936), Konrad Osterwalder
, David Ruelle
, Robert Schrader, Eduard Zehnder, Rudolf Seiler, Martin Kummer.
Jost researched quantum-mechanical scattering theory (also inverse scattering theory: Reconstruction of potentials from scattering data) and the mathematical quantum field theory
, where he in 1958 with the methods of Arthur Strong Wightman proved the PCT theorem and in 1957 introduced the Jost - Lehmann
- Dyson
- representation (an integral representation of the expectancy value of the commutator of two field operators). Jost was corresponding member Austrian Academy of Sciences
and United States National Academy of Sciences
. He received in 1984 the Max Planck medal
.
Jost was married since 1949 to the Viennese physicist Hilde Fleischer. One of Jost's leisure activities was mushroom growing.
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
) was a Swiss theoretical physicist, who worked mainly in constructive quantum field theory
Constructive quantum field theory
In mathematical physics, constructive quantum field theory is the field devoted to showing that quantum theory is mathematically compatible with special relativity. This demonstration requires new mathematics, in a sense analogous to Newton developing calculus in order to understand planetary...
.
Life and work
Jost studied in Berne and at Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zurich), where in 1946 he with thesis adviser Gregor WentzelGregor Wentzel
Gregor Wentzel was a German physicist known for development of quantum mechanics. Wentzel, Hendrik Kramers, and Léon Brillouin developed the Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin approximation in 1926...
attained a doctorate ("Zur Ladungsabhängigkeit der Kernkräfte in der Vektormesontheorie ohne neutrale Mesonen“). Jost went then a half year to Niels Bohr
Niels Bohr
Niels Henrik David Bohr was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum mechanics, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922. Bohr mentored and collaborated with many of the top physicists of the century at his institute in...
to Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, where he introduced the "Jost function" into scattering theory
Scattering theory
In mathematics and physics, scattering theory is a framework for studying and understanding the scattering of waves and particles. Prosaically, wave scattering corresponds to the collision and scattering of a wave with some material object, for instance sunlight scattered by rain drops to form a...
. Afterwards he was in Zurich an assistant of Wolfgang Pauli
Wolfgang Pauli
Wolfgang Ernst Pauli was an Austrian theoretical physicist and one of the pioneers of quantum physics. In 1945, after being nominated by Albert Einstein, he received the Nobel Prize in Physics for his "decisive contribution through his discovery of a new law of Nature, the exclusion principle or...
. From 1949 to 1955, in 1957, 1962/3 and 1968 he was at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
in Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, where he worked with Walter Kohn
Walter Kohn
Walter Kohn is an Austrian-born American theoretical physicist.He was awarded, with John Pople, the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1998. The award recognized their contributions to the understandings of the electronic properties of materials...
, Joaquin Mazdak Luttinger
Joaquin Mazdak Luttinger
Joaquin Mazdak Luttinger was an American physicist well-known for his contributions to the theory of interacting electrons in one-dimensional metals and the Fermi-liquid theory...
and Abraham Pais
Abraham Pais
Abraham Pais was a Dutch-born American physicist and science historian. Pais earned his Ph.D. from University of Utrecht just prior to a Nazi ban on Jewish participation in Dutch universities during World War II...
among others. He was since 1955 an extraordinary professor for theoretical physics at the ETH and starting from 1959 professor. Jost created 1965 together with Rudolf Haag
Rudolf Haag
Rudolf Haag is a German physicist. He is best known for his contributions to the algebraic formulation of axiomatic quantum field theory, namely the Haag-Kastler axioms...
the journal "Communications in Mathematical Physics “.
Jost established at the ETH a school of mathematical physics. Among his graduate students were Sergio Albeverio (b. 1939), Klaus Hepp
Klaus Hepp
Klaus Hepp is a German-born Swiss theoretical physicist working mainly in quantum field theory. Hepp studied mathematics and physics at Westfälischen Wilhelms-Universität in Münster and at the Eidgenössischen Technischen Hochschule in Zurich, where, in 1962, with Res Jost as thesis first...
(b. 1936), Konrad Osterwalder
Konrad Osterwalder
Konrad Osterwalder is Under Secretary-General of the United Nations and currently serves as the Rector of the United Nations University . He was appointed to the position by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in May 2007. He succeeded Prof. Hans van Ginkel from the Netherlands to be the...
, David Ruelle
David Ruelle
David Pierre Ruelle is a Belgian-French mathematical physicist. He has worked on statistical physics and dynamical systems. With Floris Takens he coined the term strange attractor, and founded a new theory of turbulence...
, Robert Schrader, Eduard Zehnder, Rudolf Seiler, Martin Kummer.
Jost researched quantum-mechanical scattering theory (also inverse scattering theory: Reconstruction of potentials from scattering data) and the mathematical quantum field theory
Quantum field theory
Quantum field theory provides a theoretical framework for constructing quantum mechanical models of systems classically parametrized by an infinite number of dynamical degrees of freedom, that is, fields and many-body systems. It is the natural and quantitative language of particle physics and...
, where he in 1958 with the methods of Arthur Strong Wightman proved the PCT theorem and in 1957 introduced the Jost - Lehmann
Harry Lehmann
Harry Lehmann was a German physicist.Lehmann studied physics at Rostock and the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin....
- Dyson
Freeman Dyson
Freeman John Dyson FRS is a British-born American theoretical physicist and mathematician, famous for his work in quantum field theory, solid-state physics, astronomy and nuclear engineering. Dyson is a member of the Board of Sponsors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists...
- representation (an integral representation of the expectancy value of the commutator of two field operators). Jost was corresponding member Austrian Academy of Sciences
Austrian Academy of Sciences
The Austrian Academy of Sciences is a legal entity under the special protection of the Federal Republic of Austria. According to the statutes of the Academy its mission is to promote the sciences and humanities in every respect and in every field, particularly in fundamental research...
and United States National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. He received in 1984 the Max Planck medal
Max Planck medal
The Max Planck medal is an award for extraordinary achievements in theoretical physics. It is awarded annually by the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft , the world's largest organization of physicists.-List of recipients:...
.
Jost was married since 1949 to the Viennese physicist Hilde Fleischer. One of Jost's leisure activities was mushroom growing.
Works
- Jost: The general theory of quantized fields, AMS, 1965
- Jost: Das Märchen vom Elfenbeinernen Turm. Reden und Aufsätze, Springer 1995 (Herausgegeben von Klaus Hepp, u.a. über Physikgeschichte bei Planck, Einstein, Faraday, Dirac, Mach, mit biographischer Note von Abraham PaisAbraham PaisAbraham Pais was a Dutch-born American physicist and science historian. Pais earned his Ph.D. from University of Utrecht just prior to a Nazi ban on Jewish participation in Dutch universities during World War II...
und Autobiographischem von Jost), ISBN 3-540-59476-0
Sources
- Abraham Pais: The Genius of Science, 2000.
- Arthur JaffeArthur JaffeArthur Jaffe is an American mathematical physicist and a professor at Harvard University. Born on December 22, 1937 he attended Princeton University as an undergraduate obtaining a degree in chemistry, and later Clare College, Cambridge, as a Marshall Scholar, obtaining a degree in mathematics...
For Res Jost and to Arthur Wightman, Communications in Mathematical Physics, Bd.134, 1990, Heft 1 (Wightman on Jost and Jost on Wightman)