Alexei Abrikosov is a theoretical physicist who predicted the existence of type-II superconductivity and developed theories describing how matter behaves at extremely low temperatures. Type-II superconducting magnets are now used to produce powerful magnetic fields for medical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). For his important work, Alexei shared the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Superconductors are materials lack electrical resistance at temperatures below absolute zero — 0 kelvin or −273.15 degrees celsius. Usually made of metal alloys or complex oxide ceramics, type-II superconductors gradually transition from superconducting to normal states under increasingly strong magnetic fields. This allows the material to retain its superconductivity at higher temperatures.
Alexei has published his work in several books, including Introduction to the Theory of Normal Metals (1972) and Fundamentals of the Theory of Metals (1988). He co-authored Methods of Quantum Field Theory in Statistical Physics (1975) with Lev Petrovich Gor’kov and Igor Ekhiel’evich Dzyaloshinski, both pioneers of superconductivity and condensed matter physics.
Subject groups
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Astronomy and Physics
Condensed matter incl softmatter, liquids, nano-materials
Awards
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Nobel Prize in Physics
Jointly with Vitaly L. Ginzburg and Anthony J. Leggett for pioneering contributions to the theory of superconductors and superfluids.
