Erwin Schrödinger

12 August 1887 – 4 January 1961

Erwin Schrödinger (1887-1961) was an Austrian theoretical physicist who developed wave mechanics, one of the foundational formulations of quantum theory. His 1926 wave equation earned him a share of the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics, and his 1935 'Schrödinger's cat' thought experiment became the most famous illustration of quantum superposition. His 1944 book What Is Life? influenced the founders of molecular biology.

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Life events

Born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary
12 August 1887

Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger was born in Vienna, the only child of a botanist and factory owner.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Received doctorate in physics from the University of Vienna
1910

He completed his doctoral studies in physics at Vienna, where he had studied under Friedrich Hasenöhrl.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Married Annemarie Bertel
1920

Schrödinger married Annemarie (Anny) Bertel, who remained his wife throughout his life despite the couple's unconventional relationships.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Appointed professor of theoretical physics at the University of Zurich
1921

In Zurich he did his most productive work, including the papers founding wave mechanics.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Published the Schrödinger wave equation
1926

In a series of 1926 papers he formulated wave mechanics and its central equation, soon shown to be equivalent to Heisenberg's matrix mechanics.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Succeeded Max Planck as professor at the University of Berlin
1927

He took over Planck's prestigious chair of theoretical physics in Berlin.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Left Germany after the Nazi rise to power and shared the Nobel Prize in Physics
1933

Opposed to Nazi antisemitism, he departed for Oxford in 1933, the same year he shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with Paul Dirac.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Proposed the Schrödinger's cat thought experiment
1935

In a 1935 essay on the interpretation of quantum mechanics he described a cat simultaneously alive and dead, illustrating the paradox of quantum superposition.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Joined the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
1940 – 1956

At the invitation of Éamon de Valera he moved to Dublin, directing the School of Theoretical Physics and remaining in Ireland for 17 years; his 1944 book What Is Life? was based on lectures given there.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Vienna, Austria
4 January 1961

Schrödinger died of tuberculosis in Vienna at the age of 73 and was buried in Alpbach, Tyrol.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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