John Ellis (physicist, born 1946): Difference between revisions

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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1946|07|01}}
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1946|07|01}}
| birth_place = [[Hampstead]], London, England, UK
| birth_place = [[Hampstead]], London, England, UK
| nationality = British
| nationality = British-Swiss
| field = [[Particle physics]]
| field = [[Particle physics]]
| workplaces = [[King's College London]]<br>[[CERN]]
| workplaces = [[King's College London]]<br>[[CERN]]
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| thesis_url = https://inspirehep.net/literature/1094494
| thesis_url = https://inspirehep.net/literature/1094494
| doctoral_advisor = Bruno Renner
| doctoral_advisor = Bruno Renner
| known_for = Proposing how to discover the [[gluon]]<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90542-3|title=Search for gluons in e+e− annihilation|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Ross|first3=Graham G.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=111|issue=2|pages=253|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.111..253E }}{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(77)90253-X|title=Search for gluons in ep+ep-annihilation|year=1977|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=130|issue=3|pages=516|bibcode = 1977NuPhB.130Q.516. }}</ref> and the [[Higgs boson]]<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90382-5|title=A phenomenological profile of the Higgs boson|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Nanopoulos|first3=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=106|pages=292–340|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.106..292E |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/874049}}</ref>
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| known_for = [[Penguin diagram]]<br>Popularizing the term "[[theory of everything]]"<ref>
<br>Coining the term [[Penguin diagram]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=J. |last2=Gaillard |first2=M.K. |last3=Nanopoulos |first3=D.V. |last4=Rudaz |first4=S. |date= |year=1977 |title=The phenomenology of the next left-handed quarks |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/0550321377903741 |journal=Nuclear Physics B |language=en |volume=131 |issue=2-3 |pages=285–307 |doi=10.1016/0550-3213(77)90374-1}}</ref>
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<br>Popularizing the term "[[Theory of Everything]]"<ref>
{{cite journal
{{cite journal
|first=John |last=Ellis
|first=John |last=Ellis
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| prizes = [[Mayhew Prize]] (1968)<br>[[Maxwell Medal and Prize]] (1982)<br>[[Dirac Medal (IOP)|Paul Dirac Medal and Prize]] (2005)
| prizes = [[Mayhew Prize]] (1968)<br>[[Maxwell Medal and Prize]] (1982)<br>[[Dirac Medal (IOP)|Paul Dirac Medal and Prize]] (2005)
}}
}}
'''Jonathan Richard Ellis''' {{post-nominals|country=GBR|CBE|FRS|HonFInstP}} (born 1 July 1946<ref name="ww">{{cite book | title = The International Who's Who 2004 | first = Elizabeth | last = Sleeman | publisher = Routledge | year = 2003 | isbn = 1-85743-217-7 | page = [https://archive.org/details/internationalwho2004ond/page/489 489] | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/internationalwho2004ond/page/489 }}</ref>) is a British [[theoretical physics|theoretical physicist]].
'''Jonathan Richard "John" Ellis''' {{post-nominals|country=GBR|CBE|FRS|HonFInstP}} (born 1 July 1946<ref name="ww">{{cite book | title = The International Who's Who 2004 | first = Elizabeth | last = Sleeman | publisher = Routledge | year = 2003 | isbn = 1-85743-217-7 | page = [https://archive.org/details/internationalwho2004ond/page/489 489] | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/internationalwho2004ond/page/489 }}</ref>) is a British-Swiss [[theoretical physics|theoretical physicist]].


After completing his secondary education at [[Highgate School]], he attended [[King's College, Cambridge]] from 1964, earning his PhD in theoretical (high-energy) particle physics in 1971, after having spent the academic year 1970/71 as visiting scientist at [[CERN]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ellis |first=Jonathan Richard |url=https://idiscover.lib.cam.ac.uk/permalink/f/t9gok8/44CAM_ALMA21428134590003606 |title=Approximate symmetries of hadrons |date=26 October 1971 |publisher=University of Cambridge |year=1971 |location=Cambridge}}</ref> After brief post-doc positions in the [[SLAC Theory Group]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bjorken |first=James |year=1998 |title=Foreword |url=https://www.slac.stanford.edu/pubs/beamline/pdf/98ii.pdf |journal=Beam Line |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=2–3}}</ref> and [[Caltech]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=John |last2=Jaffe |first2=Robert |date=1974-03-01 |title=Sum rule for deep-inelastic electroproduction from polarized protons |url=https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevD.9.1444 |journal=Physical Review D |language=en |volume=9 |issue=5 |pages=1444–1446 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevD.9.1444 |issn=0556-2821}}</ref> he went back to [[CERN]] in 1973, first as a research fellow and later as a staff member,<ref name=":0" /> where he remained until he reached the fixed retirement age of 65.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-23 |title=Oral History Interviews {{!}} John Ellis {{!}} American Institute of Physics |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623230051/https://www.aip.org/history-programs/niels-bohr-library/oral-histories/46978 |access-date=2024-03-14 |website=web.archive.org}}</ref> Since 2010 Ellis is Clerk Maxwell Professor of Theoretical Physics at [[King's College London]] and continues his work at CERN holding a visiting scientist appointment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 March 2010 |title=Clerk Maxwell Chair of Theoretical Physics appointed |url=http://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/news_details.php?news_id=1324&year=2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100607023047/http://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/news_details.php?news_id=1324&year=2010 |archive-date=2010-06-07 |access-date=2024-03-14 |website=web.archive.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Banks |first=Michael |date=11 August 2011 |title=A life after CERN |url=https://physicsworld.com/a/a-life-after-cern/ |journal=Physics World}}</ref>
After completing his secondary education at [[Highgate School]], he attended [[King's College, Cambridge]] from 1964, earning his PhD in theoretical (high-energy) particle physics in 1971, after having spent the academic year 1970/71 as a visiting student at [[CERN]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ellis |first=Jonathan Richard |url=https://idiscover.lib.cam.ac.uk/permalink/f/t9gok8/44CAM_ALMA21428134590003606 |title=Approximate symmetries of hadrons |date=26 October 1971 |publisher=University of Cambridge |year=1971 |location=Cambridge}}</ref> After one-year post-doc positions in the [[SLAC Theory Group]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bjorken |first=James |year=1998 |title=Foreword |url=https://www.slac.stanford.edu/pubs/beamline/pdf/98ii.pdf |journal=Beam Line |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=2–3}}</ref> and at [[Caltech]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=John |last2=Jaffe |first2=Robert |date=1974-03-01 |title=Sum rule for deep-inelastic electroproduction from polarized protons |url=https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevD.9.1444 |journal=Physical Review D |language=en |volume=9 |issue=5 |pages=1444–1446 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevD.9.1444 |issn=0556-2821}}</ref> he went back to [[CERN]] in 1973, first as a research fellow and from 1974 as a staff member,<ref name=":0" /> where he remained until he reached the fixed retirement age of 65.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-23 |title=Oral History Interviews {{!}} John Ellis {{!}} American Institute of Physics |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623230051/https://www.aip.org/history-programs/niels-bohr-library/oral-histories/46978 |access-date=2024-03-14 |website=web.archive.org}}</ref> Since 2010 Ellis is Clerk Maxwell Professor of Theoretical Physics at [[King's College London]], but continues to work at CERN holding a visiting scientist appointment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 March 2010 |title=Clerk Maxwell Chair of Theoretical Physics appointed |url=http://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/news_details.php?news_id=1324&year=2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100607023047/http://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/news_details.php?news_id=1324&year=2010 |archive-date=2010-06-07 |access-date=2024-03-14 |website=web.archive.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Banks |first=Michael |date=11 August 2011 |title=A life after CERN |url=https://physicsworld.com/a/a-life-after-cern/ |journal=Physics World}}</ref>

⚫
Ellis' activities at CERN are wide-ranging.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Anthony|first1=Katarina|title=John Ellis discusses the Higgs, the lack of the Higgs, and extra dimensions|journal=CERN Bulletin|date=5 September 2011|issue=37–38|url=https://cdsweb.cern.ch/journal/CERNBulletin/2011/38/News%20Articles/1379198}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Anthony|first1=Katarina|title=John Ellis considers cosmology, colloquiums and new collaborations|journal=CERN Bulletin|date=26 September 2011|issue=39–40|url=https://cds.cern.ch/journal/CERNBulletin/2011/40/News%20Articles/1383853}}</ref> He was twice Deputy Division Leader for the theory ("TH") division, and served as Division Leader for 1988–1994.<ref name=":0">{{Citation |title=Senior Staff Appointment (J. Ellis). Nomination de Personnel Supérieur. 187th Meeting of Committee of Council |date=1988 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1124596 |access-date=2024-03-14}}</ref> He was a founding member of the LEPC<ref>{{Citation |title=LEP Experiments Committee: Minutes of the 1st meeting 24-25 March 1982 |date=1982 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/304472 |access-date=2024-03-14 |publisher=CERN}}</ref> and of the LHCC;<ref>{{Citation |last=Aubert |first=J J |title=Minutes of the first meeting held on 2 Oct. 1992 |date=1992 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/303562 |access-date=2024-03-14 |publisher=CERN |last2=Brianti |first2=G |last3=Cashmore |first3=R J |last4=Di Lella |first4=L |last5=Dornan |first5=P J |last6=Duinker |first6=P |last7=Einsweiler |first7=K |last8=Eisele |first8=F |last9=Ellis |first9=Jonathan Richard}}</ref> currently he is chair of the committee to investigate physics opportunities for future proton accelerators, and is a member of the extended [[Compact Linear Collider|CLIC]] (Compact Linear Collider) Steering Committee.


⚫
Ellis' activities at CERN have been wide-ranging in addition to his research.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Anthony|first1=Katarina|title=John Ellis discusses the Higgs, the lack of the Higgs, and extra dimensions|journal=CERN Bulletin|date=5 September 2011|issue=37–38|url=https://cdsweb.cern.ch/journal/CERNBulletin/2011/38/News%20Articles/1379198}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Anthony|first1=Katarina|title=John Ellis considers cosmology, colloquiums and new collaborations|journal=CERN Bulletin|date=26 September 2011|issue=39–40|url=https://cds.cern.ch/journal/CERNBulletin/2011/40/News%20Articles/1383853}}</ref> He was twice Deputy Division Leader for the theory ("TH") division, and served as Division Leader for 1988–1994.<ref name=":0">{{Citation |title=Senior Staff Appointment (J. Ellis). Nomination de Personnel Supérieur. 187th Meeting of Committee of Council |date=1988 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1124596 |access-date=2024-03-14}}</ref> He was a member of [[List of CERN Scientific Committees|the committees]] that selected experiment at the [[Large Electron–Positron Collider|LEP]]<ref>{{Citation |title=LEP Experiments Committee: Minutes of the 1st meeting 24-25 March 1982 |date=1982 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/304472 |access-date=2024-03-14 |publisher=CERN}}</ref> and [[Large Hadron Collider|LHC]] accelerators<ref>{{Citation |last=Aubert |first=J J |title=Minutes of the first meeting held on 2 Oct. 1992 |date=1992 |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/303562 |access-date=2024-03-14 |series=LHCC-1 |publisher=CERN |last2=Brianti |first2=G |last3=Cashmore |first3=R J |last4=Di Lella |first4=L |last5=Dornan |first5=P J |last6=Duinker |first6=P |last7=Einsweiler |first7=K |last8=Eisele |first8=F |last9=Ellis |first9=Jonathan Richard}}</ref> and participated in early studies of possible future colliders such as [[Compact Linear Collider|CLIC]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=John |last2=Wilson |first2=Ian |date= |year=2001 |title=New physics with the Compact Linear Collider |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/35053224 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=409 |issue=6818 |pages=431–435 |doi=10.1038/35053224 |issn=0028-0836}}</ref> and [[Future Circular Collider|FCC]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=The TLEP Design Study Working Group |last2=Bicer |first2=M. |last3=Duran Yildiz |first3=H. |last4=Yildiz |first4=I. |last5=Coignet |first5=G. |last6=Delmastro |first6=M. |last7=Alexopoulos |first7=T. |last8=Grojean |first8=C |last9=Antusch |first9=S. |last10=Sen |first10=T. |last11=He |first11=H.-J. |last12=Potamianos |first12=K. |last13=Haug |first13=S. |last14=Moreno |first14=A. |last15=Heister |first15=A. |date= |year=2014 |title=First look at the physics case of TLEP |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1595894 |journal=Journal of High Energy Physics |language=en |volume=2014 |issue=1 |doi=10.1007/JHEP01(2014)164 |issn=1029-8479}}</ref> In the early 2000s he advised successive [[List of directors general of CERN|CERN Directors-General]] on relations with non-member states.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=John |year=2003 |title=Developing countries and CERN |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1733505 |journal=CERN Courier |volume=43 |issue=6 |pages=26-28}}</ref> He was also the first chair of CERN's Equal Opportunities Advisory Panel.<ref>{{Cite journal |year=2000 |title=Liberté? Egalité? Opportunité! |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/44474 |journal=CERN Bulletin |issue=44}}</ref>
==Scientific research==
==Scientific research==


Ellis' research interests focus on the phenomenological aspects of particle physics, though he has also made important contributions to astrophysics and cosmology and quantum gravity.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Krause |first=Michael |url=http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/9316 |title=CERN: How We Found the Higgs Boson |date= |publisher=World Scientific |year=2014 |isbn=978-981-4623-55-1 |pages=122–135 |language=en |chapter=The Theorist: John Ellis |doi=10.1142/9789814623476_0008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Nanopoulos|first2=Dimitri|title=Particle physics and cosmology|journal=CERN Courier|date=July 1983|volume=23|issue=6|pages=211–216|url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1730921}}</ref> Most of his publications relate directly to experiment, from interpreting measurements and the results of searches for new particles, to exploring the physics that could be done with future accelerators. He was one of the pioneers of research at the interface between particle physics and cosmology, which has since become a sub-specialty of its own: particle astrophysics.
Ellis' research interests focus on the phenomenological aspects of particle physics, and he has also made important contributions to astrophysics, cosmology and quantum gravity.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Krause |first=Michael |url=http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/9316 |title=CERN: How We Found the Higgs Boson |date= |publisher=World Scientific |year=2014 |isbn=978-981-4623-55-1 |pages=122–135 |language=en |chapter=The Theorist: John Ellis |doi=10.1142/9789814623476_0008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Nanopoulos|first2=Dimitri|title=Particle physics and cosmology|journal=CERN Courier|date=July 1983|volume=23|issue=6|pages=211–216|url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/1730921}}</ref> Most of his publications relate directly to experiment, from interpreting measurements and the results of searches for new particles, to exploring the physics that could be done with future accelerators. He was one of the pioneers of research at the interface between particle physics and cosmology, which has since become a sub-specialty of its own: particle astrophysics.


Ellis' early research accomplishments are centred on the phenomenology of gauge theories. Working with [[Dimitri Nanopoulos]] and [[Mary Gaillard]], he proposed in 1976 the so-called "Higgs-strahlung" process in which a [[Higgs boson]] is radiated from a ''Z''-boson<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90382-5|title=A phenomenological profile of the Higgs boson|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Nanopoulos|first3=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=106|pages=292–340|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.106..292E |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/874049}}</ref> (this proved to be the best way to search for the Higgs boson at the [[Large Electron–Positron Collider]]), and in the same year estimated the direct CP-violation contribution to rare neutral kaon decays<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90203-0|title=Left-handed currents and CP violation|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Nanopoulos|first3=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=109|issue=2|pages=213|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.109..213E |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/211385/files/197603050.pdf}}</ref> (which led to the success of the [[NA31 experiment|NA31]] and [[NA48 experiment]]s at CERN). Also in 1976, he published two papers suggesting techniques for finding the [[gluon]] in {{SubatomicParticle|Positron}}{{SubatomicParticle|Electron}} annihilations.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90542-3|title=Search for gluons in e+e− annihilation|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Ross|first3=Graham G.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=111|issue=2|pages=253|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.111..253E }}{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(77)90253-X|title=Search for gluons in ep+ep-annihilation|year=1977|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=130|issue=3|pages=516|bibcode = 1977NuPhB.130Q.516. }}</ref> The following year he predicted the mass of the [[bottom quark]] on the basis of [[Grand Unified Theory]], before this quark was observed in experiment. In 1978 he published a frequently cited general paper on such theories, with [[Andrzej Buras|Andrzej J. Buras]], Gaillard and Nanopoulos.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(78)90214-6|title=Aspects of the grand unification of strong, weak and electromagnetic interactions|year=1978|last1=Buras|first1=A.J.|last2=Ellis|first2=J.|last3=Gaillard|first3=M.K.|last4=Nanopoulos|first4=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=135|issue=1|pages=66–92|bibcode = 1978NuPhB.135...66B |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/132734}}</ref>
Ellis' early research accomplishments are centred on the phenomenology of gauge theories. Working with [[Dimitri Nanopoulos]] and [[Mary Gaillard]], he proposed in 1976 the so-called "Higgs-strahlung" process in which a [[Higgs boson]] is radiated from a ''Z''-boson<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90382-5|title=A phenomenological profile of the Higgs boson|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Nanopoulos|first3=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=106|pages=292–340|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.106..292E |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/874049}}</ref> (this proved to be the best way to search for the Higgs boson at the [[Large Electron–Positron Collider]]), and in the same year estimated the direct CP-violation contribution to rare neutral kaon decays<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90203-0|title=Left-handed currents and CP violation|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Nanopoulos|first3=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=109|issue=2|pages=213|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.109..213E |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/211385/files/197603050.pdf}}</ref> (which led to the success of the [[NA31 experiment|NA31]] and [[NA48 experiment]]s at CERN). Also in 1976, he published two papers suggesting techniques for finding the [[gluon]] in {{SubatomicParticle|Positron}}{{SubatomicParticle|Electron}} annihilations.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(76)90542-3|title=Search for gluons in e+e− annihilation|year=1976|last1=Ellis|first1=John|last2=Gaillard|first2=Mary K.|last3=Ross|first3=Graham G.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=111|issue=2|pages=253|bibcode = 1976NuPhB.111..253E }}{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(77)90253-X|title=Search for gluons in ep+ep-annihilation|year=1977|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=130|issue=3|pages=516|bibcode = 1977NuPhB.130Q.516. }}</ref> The following year he predicted the mass of the [[bottom quark]] on the basis of [[Grand Unified Theory]], before this quark was observed in experiment. In 1978 he published a frequently cited general paper on such theories, with [[Andrzej Buras|Andrzej J. Buras]], Gaillard and Nanopoulos.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(78)90214-6|title=Aspects of the grand unification of strong, weak and electromagnetic interactions|year=1978|last1=Buras|first1=A.J.|last2=Ellis|first2=J.|last3=Gaillard|first3=M.K.|last4=Nanopoulos|first4=D.V.|journal=Nuclear Physics B|volume=135|issue=1|pages=66–92|bibcode = 1978NuPhB.135...66B |url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/132734}}</ref>

Revision as of 09:46, 19 March 2024

John Ellis
CBE FRS HonFInstP
Born (1946-07-01) 1 July 1946 (age 77)
Hampstead, London, England, UK
NationalityBritish-Swiss
Alma materKing's College, Cambridge
Known forProposing how to discover the gluon[1] and the Higgs boson[2]


Coining the term Penguin diagram[3]


Popularizing the term "Theory of Everything"[4][5]
AwardsMayhew Prize (1968)
Maxwell Medal and Prize (1982)
Paul Dirac Medal and Prize (2005)
Scientific career
FieldsParticle physics
InstitutionsKing's College London
CERN
ThesisApproximate symmetries of hadrons
Doctoral advisorBruno Renner

Jonathan Richard "John" Ellis CBE FRS HonFInstP (born 1 July 1946[6]) is a British-Swiss theoretical physicist.

After completing his secondary education at Highgate School, he attended King's College, Cambridge from 1964, earning his PhD in theoretical (high-energy) particle physics in 1971, after having spent the academic year 1970/71 as a visiting student at CERN.[7] After one-year post-doc positions in the SLAC Theory Group[8] and at Caltech,[9] he went back to CERN in 1973, first as a research fellow and from 1974 as a staff member,[10] where he remained until he reached the fixed retirement age of 65.[11] Since 2010 Ellis is Clerk Maxwell Professor of Theoretical Physics at King's College London, but continues to work at CERN holding a visiting scientist appointment.[12][13]

Ellis' activities at CERN have been wide-ranging in addition to his research.[14][15] He was twice Deputy Division Leader for the theory ("TH") division, and served as Division Leader for 1988–1994.[10] He was a member of the committees that selected experiment at the LEP[16] and LHC accelerators[17] and participated in early studies of possible future colliders such as CLIC[18] and FCC.[19] In the early 2000s he advised successive CERN Directors-General on relations with non-member states.[20] He was also the first chair of CERN's Equal Opportunities Advisory Panel.[21]

Scientific research

Ellis' research interests focus on the phenomenological aspects of particle physics, and he has also made important contributions to astrophysics, cosmology and quantum gravity.[22][23] Most of his publications relate directly to experiment, from interpreting measurements and the results of searches for new particles, to exploring the physics that could be done with future accelerators. He was one of the pioneers of research at the interface between particle physics and cosmology, which has since become a sub-specialty of its own: particle astrophysics.

Ellis' early research accomplishments are centred on the phenomenology of gauge theories. Working with Dimitri Nanopoulos and Mary Gaillard, he proposed in 1976 the so-called "Higgs-strahlung" process in which a Higgs boson is radiated from a Z-boson[24] (this proved to be the best way to search for the Higgs boson at the Large Electron–Positron Collider), and in the same year estimated the direct CP-violation contribution to rare neutral kaon decays[25] (which led to the success of the NA31 and NA48 experiments at CERN). Also in 1976, he published two papers suggesting techniques for finding the gluon in
e+

e−
 annihilations.[26] The following year he predicted the mass of the bottom quark on the basis of Grand Unified Theory, before this quark was observed in experiment. In 1978 he published a frequently cited general paper on such theories, with Andrzej J. Buras, Gaillard and Nanopoulos.[27]

In the 1980s, Ellis became a leading advocate of models of supersymmetry. In one of his earliest works, he showed that the lightest supersymmetric particle is a natural dark matter candidate.[28] In 1991, he showed that radiative corrections to the mass of the lightest Higgs boson in minimal supersymmetric models increased that mass beyond the reach of the Large Electron–Positron Collider (LEP) searches.[29] More generally, Ellis and collaborators pioneered the analysis of so-called "benchmark scenarios" meant to illustrate the range of phenomenology to be expected from supersymmetric models;[30] such analyses have played a major role in evaluating the promise of various future accelerator options.

In parallel to his investigations of supersymmetric phenomenology, Ellis has also advocated phenomenological probes of quantum gravity and string theory. These probes include direct tests of quantum mechanics with the CPLEAR Collaboration and the derivation of Grand Unified Theories from string theory. In this vein, his work on tests of the constancy of the velocity of light and models of string cosmology received separate prizes from the Gravity Research Foundation.

An impression of the impact of Ellis' research can be obtained from the INSPIRE-HEP reference system for scientific papers in particle physics and related fields. As of 2024, this data base lists over 1,000 scientific papers of which he is an author; altogether the sum of citations is above 120,000. In 2004 a SPIRES survey ranked him as the second-most cited theoretical physicist.[31] His publications include six papers with over 1000 citations. His h-index for published papers (2024) is 159.[32]

Support of particle accelerator projects

John Ellis in his office at CERN in January 2012

In addition to his theoretical research, John Ellis has been an advocate and supporter of future accelerators, beginning with LEP and the LHC, and extending to Compact Linear Collider (CLIC), photon colliders, and future proton accelerators. Naturally his theoretical work reflected these connections, as when he showed that data from the Stanford Linear Collider (SLC) and from LEP could be used to predict the masses of the top quark and the Higgs boson. Such predictions are now a mainstream activity within particle physics, and constitute one of the most important bridges between the experimental and theoretical communities.

Concerning the LHC, Ellis played a leading role in the seminal 1984 workshop on physics to be done with such an accelerator. Since then he has written many articles on searches for Higgs bosons and supersymmetric particles at the LHC, both for the particle physics community and at a more popular level.

John Ellis is currently a strong supporter of the FCC option for a future high-energy collider complex.[33]

Awards and honours

Outreach and spreading physics around the world

John Ellis at the Birzeit University in November 2008

Ellis is regularly invited to give public lectures on particle physics and related topics. In the two-year period 2004–5, he gave public lectures in Geneva (in French), in Granada and Barcelona (in Spanish), in Rome (in Italian) and in Warsaw (in English). He recently gave a speech about the future of Physics beyond the Higgs boson in València (in English). While at CERN he often gives introductory talks to visitors, ranging from official delegations from the United Kingdom to physics teachers at the high-school level.

Ellis is known for his efforts to involve non-European nations in CERN scientific activities. In the context of the LHC, he has interacted frequently with physicists, administrators at universities and institutes, and ministers of funding agencies and diplomatic corps from a wide variety of countries, ranging from major CERN partners like the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada, India, Israel, Armenia and China, to states with nascent physics programs such as Azerbaijan, the Baltic republics, Bolivia, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Iran, Madagascar, New Zealand, Pakistan, Romania, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and lately in Palestine and Rwanda, and many others. These interactions have fostered the international character of CERN and opened the pathways of scientific discourse all around the world.

In 2014, Ellis delivered an address about his experiences at CERN at the second Starmus Festival in the Canary Islands. Ellis is a regular panellist at HowTheLightGetsIn, the music and philosophy festival hosted each year in Hay-on-Wye.

References

  1. ^ Ellis, John; Gaillard, Mary K.; Ross, Graham G. (1976). "Search for gluons in e+e− annihilation". Nuclear Physics B. 111 (2): 253. Bibcode:1976NuPhB.111..253E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(76)90542-3."Search for gluons in ep+ep-annihilation". Nuclear Physics B. 130 (3): 516. 1977. Bibcode:1977NuPhB.130Q.516.. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(77)90253-X.
  2. ^ Ellis, John; Gaillard, Mary K.; Nanopoulos, D.V. (1976). "A phenomenological profile of the Higgs boson". Nuclear Physics B. 106: 292–340. Bibcode:1976NuPhB.106..292E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(76)90382-5.
  3. ^ Ellis, J.; Gaillard, M.K.; Nanopoulos, D.V.; Rudaz, S. (1977). "The phenomenology of the next left-handed quarks". Nuclear Physics B. 131 (2–3): 285–307. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(77)90374-1.
  4. ^ Ellis, John (2002). "Physics gets physical (correspondence)". Nature. 415 (6875): 957. Bibcode:2002Natur.415..957E. doi:10.1038/415957b. PMID 11875539.
  5. ^ Ellis, John (1986). "The Superstring: Theory of Everything, or of Nothing?". Nature. 323 (6089): 595–598. Bibcode:1986Natur.323..595E. doi:10.1038/323595a0. S2CID 4344940.
  6. ^ Sleeman, Elizabeth (2003). The International Who's Who 2004. Routledge. p. 489. ISBN 1-85743-217-7.
  7. ^ Ellis, Jonathan Richard (26 October 1971). Approximate symmetries of hadrons. Cambridge: University of Cambridge.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  8. ^ Bjorken, James (1998). "Foreword" (PDF). Beam Line. 28 (2): 2–3.
  9. ^ Ellis, John; Jaffe, Robert (1 March 1974). "Sum rule for deep-inelastic electroproduction from polarized protons". Physical Review D. 9 (5): 1444–1446. doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.9.1444. ISSN 0556-2821.
  10. ^ a b Senior Staff Appointment (J. Ellis). Nomination de Personnel Supérieur. 187th Meeting of Committee of Council, 1988, retrieved 14 March 2024
  11. ^ "Oral History Interviews | John Ellis | American Institute of Physics". web.archive.org. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  12. ^ "Clerk Maxwell Chair of Theoretical Physics appointed". web.archive.org. 31 March 2010. Archived from the original on 7 June 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  13. ^ Banks, Michael (11 August 2011). "A life after CERN". Physics World.
  14. ^ Anthony, Katarina (5 September 2011). "John Ellis discusses the Higgs, the lack of the Higgs, and extra dimensions". CERN Bulletin (37–38).
  15. ^ Anthony, Katarina (26 September 2011). "John Ellis considers cosmology, colloquiums and new collaborations". CERN Bulletin (39–40).
  16. ^ LEP Experiments Committee: Minutes of the 1st meeting 24-25 March 1982, CERN, 1982, retrieved 14 March 2024
  17. ^ Aubert, J J; Brianti, G; Cashmore, R J; Di Lella, L; Dornan, P J; Duinker, P; Einsweiler, K; Eisele, F; Ellis, Jonathan Richard (1992), Minutes of the first meeting held on 2 Oct. 1992, LHCC-1, CERN, retrieved 14 March 2024
  18. ^ Ellis, John; Wilson, Ian (2001). "New physics with the Compact Linear Collider". Nature. 409 (6818): 431–435. doi:10.1038/35053224. ISSN 0028-0836.
  19. ^ The TLEP Design Study Working Group; Bicer, M.; Duran Yildiz, H.; Yildiz, I.; Coignet, G.; Delmastro, M.; Alexopoulos, T.; Grojean, C; Antusch, S.; Sen, T.; He, H.-J.; Potamianos, K.; Haug, S.; Moreno, A.; Heister, A. (2014). "First look at the physics case of TLEP". Journal of High Energy Physics. 2014 (1). doi:10.1007/JHEP01(2014)164. ISSN 1029-8479.
  20. ^ Ellis, John (2003). "Developing countries and CERN". CERN Courier. 43 (6): 26–28.
  21. ^ "Liberté? Egalité? Opportunité!". CERN Bulletin (44). 2000.
  22. ^ Krause, Michael (2014). "The Theorist: John Ellis". CERN: How We Found the Higgs Boson. World Scientific. pp. 122–135. doi:10.1142/9789814623476_0008. ISBN 978-981-4623-55-1.
  23. ^ Ellis, John; Nanopoulos, Dimitri (July 1983). "Particle physics and cosmology". CERN Courier. 23 (6): 211–216.
  24. ^ Ellis, John; Gaillard, Mary K.; Nanopoulos, D.V. (1976). "A phenomenological profile of the Higgs boson". Nuclear Physics B. 106: 292–340. Bibcode:1976NuPhB.106..292E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(76)90382-5.
  25. ^ Ellis, John; Gaillard, Mary K.; Nanopoulos, D.V. (1976). "Left-handed currents and CP violation" (PDF). Nuclear Physics B. 109 (2): 213. Bibcode:1976NuPhB.109..213E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(76)90203-0.
  26. ^ Ellis, John; Gaillard, Mary K.; Ross, Graham G. (1976). "Search for gluons in e+e− annihilation". Nuclear Physics B. 111 (2): 253. Bibcode:1976NuPhB.111..253E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(76)90542-3."Search for gluons in ep+ep-annihilation". Nuclear Physics B. 130 (3): 516. 1977. Bibcode:1977NuPhB.130Q.516.. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(77)90253-X.
  27. ^ Buras, A.J.; Ellis, J.; Gaillard, M.K.; Nanopoulos, D.V. (1978). "Aspects of the grand unification of strong, weak and electromagnetic interactions". Nuclear Physics B. 135 (1): 66–92. Bibcode:1978NuPhB.135...66B. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(78)90214-6.
  28. ^ Ellis, John; Hagelin, J.S.; Nanopoulos, D.V.; Olive, K.; Srednicki, M. (1984). "Supersymmetric relics from the big bang". Nuclear Physics B. 238 (2): 453. Bibcode:1984NuPhB.238..453E. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(84)90461-9. OSTI 1446888.
  29. ^ Ellis, John; Ridolfi, Giovanni; Zwirner, Fabio (1991). "Radiative corrections to the masses of supersymmetric Higgs bosons". Physics Letters B. 257 (1–2): 83–91. Bibcode:1991PhLB..257...83E. doi:10.1016/0370-2693(91)90863-L.
  30. ^ Battaglia, M.; De Roeck, A.; Ellis, J.; Gianotti, F.; Matchev, K.T.; Olive, K.A.; Pape, L.; Wilson, G. (2001). "Proposed Post-LEP benchmarks for supersymmetry". The European Physical Journal C. 22 (3): 535–561. arXiv:hep-ph/0106204. Bibcode:2001EPJC...22..535B. doi:10.1007/s100520100792. S2CID 15749160.
  31. ^ "The top cited theory authors in the SPIRES-HEP database (2004)". SPIRES-HEP. May 2004. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
  32. ^ "INSPIRE-HEP: Ellis, John R." INSPIRE-HEP. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  33. ^ Crivellin, Andreas; Ellis, John (6 January 2022). "Exotic flavours at the FCC". CERN Courier. 62 (1): 35–38.
  34. ^ "Duddell Medal and Prize". Physics Bulletin. 33 (2): 62–63. 1982. doi:10.1088/0031-9112/33/2/028. ISSN 0031-9112.
  35. ^ "Maxwell Medal and Prize". Physics Bulletin. 33 (2): 63–64. 1982. doi:10.1088/0031-9112/33/2/029. ISSN 0031-9112.
  36. ^ "Royal Society: Fellows Directory — Jonathan Ellis". royalsociety.org. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  37. ^ London, King's College. "King's Physicist appointed Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Physics". King's College London. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  38. ^ "People and things". CERN Courier. 34 (9): 24. November 1994.
  39. ^ "Gravity Research Foundation: Award essays by year". Gravity Research Foundation. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  40. ^ Ellis, John; Mavromatos, N. E.; Nanopoulos, D. V. (1999). "Search for Quantum Gravity". General Relativity and Gravitation. 31 (9): 1257–1262. doi:10.1023/A:1026720723556. ISSN 0001-7701.
  41. ^ Ellis, John; Mavromatos, Nikolaos E.; Nanopoulos, Dimitri V. (2005). "The string coupling accelerates the expansion of the universe". International Journal of Modern Physics D. 14 (12): 2327–2333. doi:10.1142/S0218271805008042. ISSN 0218-2718.
  42. ^ "Paul Dirac Medal and Prize recipients". Institute of Physics. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  43. ^ "Nya hedersdoktorer inom teknik och naturvetenskap". uu.se. 7 October 2010. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2009.
  44. ^ "No. 60173". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 2012. p. 7.
  45. ^ "John Ellis honoured by the Queen". CERN Courier. 52 (6): 39. July 2012.
  46. ^ "IOP welcomes six new Honorary Fellows". Institute of Physics. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  47. ^ "King's Physicist appointed Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Physics". www.kcl.ac.uk. Retrieved 21 December 2020.

External links

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