# Willis Lamb

_American physicist (1913–2008)_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/willis-lamb
Last updated: 2026-11-01

> Willis Eugene Lamb Jr. was an American physicist who was able to precisely determine a surprising shift in electron energies in a hydrogen atom, known as the Lamb shift. For this work, Lamb shared the 1955 Nobel Prize in Physics with Polykarp Kusch. He was a professor at the University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 12 July 1913 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Los Angeles ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P19))
- **Died:** 15 May 2008 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P570))
- **Place of death:** Tucson ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P20))
- **Citizenship:** United States ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P27))
- **Occupation:** physicist; university teacher ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P106))
- **Education:** University of California, Berkeley; Los Angeles High School ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P69))
- **Awards:** Guggenheim Fellowship; Nobel Prize in Physics; National Medal of Science; Rumford Prize; Einstein Prize for Laser Science; Fellow of the American Physical Society; Fellow of the Optical Society; Guthrie Lecture; Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; honorary doctor of Yeshiva University; honorary doctorate from Columbia University; honorary doctor of Ulm University; honorary doctor of the University of Pennsylvania ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497#P166))

## Questions

**When was Willis Lamb born?**  
Willis Lamb was born on 12 July 1913 in Los Angeles.

**Where did Willis Lamb study?**  
Willis Lamb was educated at University of California, Berkeley, Los Angeles 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): Willis Lamb](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willis_Lamb) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q186497](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q186497) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Willis Lamb 1955.jpg by Nobel foundation (Public domain)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Willis_Lamb_1955.jpg)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Willis Lamb, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Willis Lamb 1955.jpg — Nobel foundation, Public domain.

## Cite this page

"Willis Lamb". DigiNepal. Last updated 1 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/willis-lamb. Retrieved 15 November 2026.