Paul Dirac Medal and Prize recipients

2023

Professor Gavin P Salam

For profound, wide-ranging and impactful contributions to particle physics, especially those concerning the identification and structure of hadronic jets.

Find out more about Professor Gavin P Salam

2022

Professor Michael William Finnis
Imperial College London

For opening entire areas of materials physics to rigorous theory and atomic-scale computation, including atomic interactions, irradiation damage, metal–ceramic interfaces, grain boundary embrittlement and ab initio thermodynamics of open systems.

2021

Professor Steven Balbus
University of Oxford

For fundamental contributions to the theory of accretion-disc turbulence and the dynamical stability of astrophysical fluids, breaking new ground by establishing the critical role played by weak magnetic fields.

2020

Professor Carlos S Frenk
Institute of Computational Cosmology, Durham University

For outstanding contributions to establishing the current standard model for the formation of all cosmic structure, and for leading computational cosmology within the UK for more than three decades.

2019

Professor R Keith Ellis
Durham University
For his seminal work in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) where he performed many of the key calculations that led to the acceptance of QCD as the correct theory of the strong interaction.

2018

Professor John Chalker
University of Oxford
For his pioneering, deep, and distinctive contributions to condensed-matter theory, particularly in the quantum Hall effect, and to geometrically frustrated magnets.

2017

Professor Michael Duff
Imperial College London and Oxford University
For sustained groundbreaking contributions to theoretical physics including the discovery of Weyl anomalies, for having pioneered Kaluza-Klein supergravity, and for recognising that superstrings in 10 dimensions are merely a special case of membranes in an 11-dimensional M-theory.

2016

Professor Sandu Popescu
University of Bristol
For his fundamental and influential research into nonlocality and his contribution to the foundations of quantum physics.

2015

Professor John David Barrow
University of Cambridge
For his combination of mathematical and physical reasoning to increase our understanding of the evolution of the universe, and his use of cosmology to increase our understanding of fundamental physics.

2014

Professor Tim Palmer
University of Oxford
For the development of probabilistic weather and climate prediction systems.

2013

Professor Stephen Mark Barnett
University of Strathclyde
For his wide ranging contributions throughout optics research, which both inspire and lead experimental endeavours.

2012

Professor Graham Garland Ross
Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford
For his theoretical work in developing both the Standard Model of fundamental particles and forces and theories beyond the Standard Model that have led to many new insights into the origins and nature of the universe.

2011

Professor Christopher Isham
Imperial College London
For his major contributions to the search for a consistent quantum theory of gravity and to the foundations of quantum mechanics.

2010

Professor James Binney
Rudolf Peierls Institute for Theoretical Physics, Oxford University
For his contribution to our understanding of how galaxies are constituted, how they work and how they were formed.

2009

Professor Michael Cates
University of Edinburgh
For pioneering work in the theoretical physics of soft materials, particularly in relation to their flow behaviour.

2008

Professor Bryan Webber
University of Cambridge
For his pioneering work in understanding and applying quantum chromodynamics (QCD), the theory of the strong interaction which is one of the three fundamental forces of Nature.

2007

David Sherrington
University of Oxford
For his pioneering work in spin glasses.

2006

Michael Gillan
University College London
For his contributions to the development of atomic-scale computer simulations, which have greatly extended their power and effectiveness across an immense range of applications.

2005

John Ellis
Theory Division, Physics Department, CERN
For his highly influential work on particle physics phenomenology; in particular on the properties of gluons, the Higgs boson and the top quark.

2004

Michael B Green

2003

Christopher Michael Hull

2002

John Howard Hannay

2001

Brian Kidd Ridley

2000

John Lawrence Cardy

1999

Ian C Percival

1998

David Deutsch

1997

Peter Ware Higgs

1996

John Brian Pendry

1995

Daniel Frank Walls

1994

Volker Heine

1993

David James Thouless

1992

Anthony James Leggett

1991

Rudolf Ernst Peierls

1990

Michael Victor Berry

1989

Roger Penrose

1988

John Stewart Bell

1987

Stephen William Hawking