In this biography
Quick facts
- Born
- 24 February 1944
- Birthplace
- Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, United States
- Country
- United States
- Nationality
- Not independently established
- Known for
- Developing laser-cooled trapped ions for precision measurement and quantum control
Why this life matters
Developing laser-cooled trapped ions for precision measurement and quantum control
Timeline
Key moments
Birth
David Wineland was born in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, United States.
Laser cooling demonstration
Coauthored a radiation-pressure cooling experiment with Bob Drullinger and Fred Walls.
Nobel recognition
Received Nobel recognition for the work described in the official award record.
Mechanical curiosity and precision experiments
David Wineland was born in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, in 1944 and grew up largely in Sacramento. His childhood interests included model aircraft, cars and mechanical work. He began university at Davis in 1961 before moving further into physics. Graduate study at Harvard began in 1965, where he joined Norman Ramseyโs group. Working on deuterium hyperfine measurements introduced him to precision experiments and to a laboratory culture in which graduate students helped one another solve practical problems.
From trapped electrons to a new laboratory
After Harvard, Wineland joined Hans Dehmeltโs group at the University of Washington. He worked toward experiments on a single trapped electron, motivated by the reduction of systematic effects in magnetic-moment measurements. He later moved to the National Bureau of Standards in Boulder. An empty laboratory in 1977 became the setting for laser-cooling work with colleagues including Bob Drullinger and Fred Walls. These transitions connect his later quantum-control programme with earlier training in careful measurement and electromagnetic trapping.
What the 1978 experiment established
The 1978 WinelandโDrullingerโWalls paper reported radiation-pressure cooling of magnesium ions held in a Penning trap. Its measured temperature bound and its suggested prospects were different parts of the record: the abstract reported temperatures below forty kelvin while discussing much lower temperatures as possible. Reading those statements separately prevents a projected limit from becoming a claimed experimental achievement. Laser cooling became one enabling part of a much broader programme on trapped particles, frequency standards and controlled quantum behaviour.
A team-based quantum programme
The National Bureau of Standards became NIST in 1988. Winelandโs lecture places the work within successive generations of colleagues, including Wayne Itano and Jim Bergquist, and distinguishes cooling, detecting internal-state changes and controlling motion. He shared the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics with Serge Haroche for experimental methods enabling measurement and manipulation of individual quantum systems. His career shows how a precision-measurement programme can develop into a platform for new questions, while keeping the technical accomplishments of different experiments and years distinct.
Quick answers
Frequently asked questions about David Wineland
- Where was Wineland born?
- His autobiography specifies Wauwatosa, just outside Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
- Who shared the 2012 Physics Nobel with him?
- Serge Haroche, for complementary methods of studying individual quantum systems.
Keep exploring
Lives connected to this story
- Norman Ramsey
Follow Winelandโs doctoral mentor and the precision-measurement tradition behind his later work.
Sources and further reading
Explore the evidence
These references support the biography and offer further reading. Official records, first-person accounts and independent reporting provide different perspectives; image records document attribution and licensing.
- 1. Wineland, Drullinger and Walls, PRL, 1978Radiation-Pressure Cooling of Bound Resonant Absorbers
The measured below 40 K bound must not be replaced by the prospective 10^-3 K statement.
- 2. Nobel Prize OutreachDavid Wineland โ Nobel lecture
- 3. Nobel Prize OutreachDavid Wineland โ Facts
- 4. Nobel Prize OutreachDavid Wineland โ Biographical
