UCSB physicists John Martinis and Michel Devoret have been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics.
They were recognized for work that, according to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, “revealed quantum physics in action.”
“It is a great honor to be awarded the Nobel prize," Martinis said. "I am grateful to have worked with John Clarke and Michel Devoret during my PhD thesis, as they taught me how to do compelling experiments. The global physics community has also contributed greatly to the success of superconducting qubits. Next, let's build a useful quantum computer!"
Campus officials say their discoveries and findings have opened the door to major advancements in technology. Technology that is as widespread as cellphones, data storage devices, and LED lighting while also paving the way for future breakthroughs in fields like cryptography."
"Their successful efforts to build an electronic circuit with superconductors and measure their properties in the 1980s has had a transformational and lasting influence on today’s technology, paving the way for components that we find in everyday devices such as our cellphones, as well as for major advancements in communication, computing and sensing. The impact of their work cannot be overstated. We look forward to celebrating their accomplishments,” said UCSB Chancellor Dennis Assanis.
Martinis, who got his doctorate in physics in 1987 from UC Berkeley arrived at UCSB in 2004. In 2014, Martinis and his team were hired by Google Quantum AI to build a quantum computer. Five years ago he resigned from Google and joined Australian startup Silicon Quantum Computing. A few years ago he co-founded the quantum computing company Qolab, where he serves as Chief Technology Officer.
Devoret got his doctorate in condensed matter physics from University of Paris, Orsay, in 1982, and worked as a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley. He went on to serve as the director of research, head of the Quantronics Group at CEA-Saclay in France from 1995-2002, then became a professor of applied physics at Yale University from 2002-2024. He ended up joining the faculty at UCSB, and also is the Chief Scientist at Google Quantum AI.
