에드워드 위튼

소개

에드워드 위튼(영어: Edward Witten IPA: [ˈɛdwɚd ˈwɪtən], 1951년 8월 26일~)은 미국의 수리물리학자이자 이론물리학자이다. 프린스턴 고등연구소(IAS)의 교수이다.

Edward Witten is an American theoretical physicist known for his contributions to string theory, topological quantum field theory, and various areas of mathematics. He is a professor emeritus in the school of natural sciences at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Witten is a researcher in string theory, quantum gravity, supersymmetric quantum field theories, and other areas of mathematical physics. Witten's work has also significantly impacted pure mathematics. In 1990, he became the first physicist to be awarded a Fields Medal by the International Mathematical Union, for his mathematical insights in physics, such as his 1981 proof of the positive energy theorem in general relativity, and his interpretation of the Jones invariants of knots as Feynman integrals. He is considered the practical founder of M-theory.