“My Life in Science”

Presentation Abstract:

I was born in Ashton-under-Lyne in 1943, a Lancashire mill town where I grew up, went to school, learnt to play the piano, and had many friends. Life changed in 1962 when I went up to Cambridge to continue my science studies. The thirteen years I spent there moulded me as a scientist and afforded huge cultural opportunities especially in the appreciation of music. My next move in 1975 was back to the North to work for the government at the new synchrotron radiation source as head of the theory division, a big step up for me professionally. It was there that I got married to Pat who I had met in Cambridge. My last move in 1981 was to Imperial College London where my work blossomed into many areas some of which I shall mention in my talk.

Prof. John Pendry will be introduced by Prof. Richard Averitt and Associate Prof. Micheal Frazier of UC San Diego.

John Pendry is the 2024 Kyoto Prize Laureate in Advanced Technology. He is a Professor of Theoretical Solid State Physics at Imperial College London and the UK’s leading theoretical physicist. After earning his Ph.D. at University of Cambridge, Pendry’s initial research concerned a low-energy electron diffraction theory for examining and measuring the surface of materials for practical purposes. He theoretically demonstrated that materials with electromagnetic properties not found in nature, such as negative-refractive-index materials (metamaterials) can be created by designing microstructures smaller than the wavelength of the target electromagnetic waves. This groundwork helped create innovative materials such as “superlenses” with subwavelength resolution and “invisibility cloaks”. In 2014 he was recognized by the Kavli Prize in Nanoscience.