Publications
Case Studies
The Institute has produced the following set of case studies showcasing the vital contribution that curiosity-driven physics research has made to a number of major technological developments, which in turn have led to significant contributions to the UK's gross domestic product and/or improved the quality of life of its people.
The Institute aims to update the case studies, particularly the timelines, on a regular basis and is keen to receive any relevant information.
Cancer diagnosis and treatment
Physics research has played, and continues to play, an essential role in improving the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
(Updated: 16 July 2009)
DNA and physics
The discovery of the structure of DNA heralded the birth of the field of molecular biology, in which physicists, chemists and biologists work together to unravel the basic processes of life.
The global positioning system
Satellite-based navigation and positioning technology, underpinned by physics research, is no longer the preserve of the military but is now an invaluable aid in all aspects of life.
Holography
A technique creating three-dimensional images based on the physics of light waves, and invented in the UK, has a range of applications – from security to data storage.
Lasers
Lasers provide the archetypal example of how a discovery in basic physics led to an invention, several decades later, that was unpredictably world-changing.
Liquid-crystal displays
Liquid-crystal displays have become the image-display technology of choice, following a long chain of physics-based R&D initiated by pioneering work in the UK.
(Updated: 8 September 2009)
Magnetic resonance imaging
Magnetic resonance imaging, based on ideas from nuclear physics and developed in the UK, is now a routine, safe, clinical technique for seeing inside the body and diagnosing disease.
Optical fibres
Light-carrying glass fibres have transformed communications, thanks to pioneering work carried out by UK physicists.
The ozone layer
Understanding and protecting the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere has been a major achievement in physics-based environmental research.
The World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is an outstanding example of how research in particle physics changed the world in a totally unforeseeable way.
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