The International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (ICTS-TIFR), Bengaluru, is organising a special conference between the 13th and 17th of January 2025 on the occasion of ‘A Hundred Years of Quantum Mechanics’.
The basic ideas of Quantum Mechanics were developed at the beginning of the 20th century with the remarkable work of Max Planck on black body radiation, Albert Einstein on the photoelectric effect, and Niels Bohr on atomic spectra. The year 1925 saw the field of Quantum Mechanics become a concrete mathematical theory of nature from the seeds sown by the failure of classical Newtonian mechanics to explain various natural phenomena. Following two decades of hectic mathematical developments and active philosophical debates, the problems with Newtonian mechanics were resolved. Physicists like Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Satyendranath Bose, Marie Curie, Werner Heisenberg, Erwin Schrödinger, Paul Dirac, Max Born, Louis de Broglie, and many eventual Nobel laureates contributed massively to solving the jigsaw puzzles. A century later, 2025 has been declared as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology by the United Nations (https://quantum2025.org/en/ ).
The academic conference at ICTS-TIFR is being organised by Prof. Abhishek Dhar and Prof. Rajesh Gopakumar, Centre Director. It aims to highlight the tremendous successes of Quantum Mechanics in the last century since its discovery, the many branches of physics it created, various open challenges, and the technological advancements it led to and that are ubiquitous today, like transistors, lasers, electron microscopes, and MRI technology. The latter form the bedrock of modern devices like computers, smartphones, and much of medical machinery. The discussions will look towards the emerging frontiers which will shape the next century. It will gather luminaries in different branches of physics informed by Quantum Mechanics, including High Energy Physics, String Theory, Cosmology, Condensed Matter Physics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Quantum Chaos, and Quantum Information/Computing and Mathematics.
Apart from the 30 eminent speakers from all over the world, the meeting will have participation from almost 300 researchers in the area of quantum physics from all over India. The broad medley of talks at the conference will provide a perspective on the history of the subject, its present status, and outstanding problems. The meeting will emphasise both fundamental aspects, as well as applications and technologies, in particular quantum information and quantum computation.
Scientists available for interaction with the media include Prof. David Gross (Nobel Laureate, 2004), Prof. Rana Adhikari, Prof. Peter Zoller, Prof. Subir Sachdev, Prof. Abhishek Dhar, and Prof. Rajesh Gopakumar.
“Quantum Mechanics is one of those epochal developments which have changed the course of history. In addition to deciphering the atomic world, it has transformed our modern world through almost all the advanced technology we use. Our meeting at ICTS is one of the first worldwide to celebrate the centenary of Modern Quantum Mechanics as part of the International Year of the Quantum. It is also appropriate to note that this is the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Department of Atomic Energy by Homi Bhabha, which has been at the forefront of supporting basic sciences in the country,” said Prof. Rajesh Gopakumar, Centre Director, ICTS-TIFR, and organiser of the QM100 meeting.
ICTS-TIFR thanks Mr. Mukesh Bansal, the Murty Trust, Arista Networks, Dr. Mani Bhaumik,
and the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India for their generous support for this event.
More information can be found on the event webpage here: https://icts.res.in/discussion-meeting/qm100
Website: https://icts.res.in
