# Robert B. Laughlin

_American physicist_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/robert-b-laughlin
Last updated: 2026-11-01

> Robert Betts Laughlin (born November 1, 1950) is an American physicist. He is the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of Physics and Applied Physics at Stanford University. Along with Horst L. Störmer of Columbia University and Daniel C. Tsui of Princeton University, he was awarded a share of the 1998 Nobel Prize in physics for their explanation of the fractional quantum Hall effect.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 1 November 1950 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Visalia ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P19))
- **Citizenship:** United States ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P27))
- **Occupation:** physicist; university teacher; non-fiction writer ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P106))
- **Education:** Massachusetts Institute of Technology; University of California, Berkeley; Redwood High School ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P69))
- **Official website:** profiles.stanford.edu/robert-laughlin ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P856))
- **Awards:** Nobel Prize in Physics; Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize; Onsager Medal; Fellow of the American Physical Society; Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award; Benjamin Franklin Medal in Physics ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997#P166))

## About

In 1983, Laughlin was first to provide a many body wave function, now known as the Laughlin wavefunction, for the fractional quantum Hall effect, which was able to correctly explain the fractionalized charge observed in experiments. This state has since been interpreted as the integer quantum Hall effect of the composite fermion.

His 2017 paper, "Pumped thermal grid storage with heat exchange" inspired Project Malta at Google X and subsequently Malta inc.

## Questions

**When was Robert B. Laughlin born?**  
Robert B. Laughlin was born on 1 November 1950 in Visalia.

**Where did Robert B. Laughlin study?**  
Robert B. Laughlin was educated at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, Redwood High School.

## Related

- [Jan Koum](https://diginpl.com/people/jan-koum)
- [Joe Gebbia](https://diginpl.com/people/joe-gebbia)
- [Luke Nosek](https://diginpl.com/people/luke-nosek)
- [Miriam Adelson](https://diginpl.com/people/miriam-adelson)
- [Adam Riess](https://diginpl.com/people/adam-riess)
- [Alan J. Heeger](https://diginpl.com/people/alan-j-heeger)
- [Alfred G. Gilman](https://diginpl.com/people/alfred-g-gilman)
- [Alfred Hershey](https://diginpl.com/people/alfred-hershey)
- [Allan MacLeod Cormack](https://diginpl.com/people/allan-macleod-cormack)
- [Andrea M. Ghez](https://diginpl.com/people/andrea-m-ghez)
- [Andrew Fire](https://diginpl.com/people/andrew-fire)
- [Andrew Schally](https://diginpl.com/people/andrew-schally)

## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Robert B. Laughlin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_B._Laughlin) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q189997](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q189997) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Robert Laughlin, Stanford University.jpg by Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News Service (CC BY 3.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robert_Laughlin,_Stanford_University.jpg)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Robert B. Laughlin, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Robert Laughlin, Stanford University.jpg — Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News Service, CC BY 3.0.

## Cite this page

"Robert B. Laughlin". DigiNepal. Last updated 1 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/robert-b-laughlin. Retrieved 14 November 2026.