Francis Halzen wins 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics for IceCube neutrino discovery
The research led to the groundbreaking discovery of high-energy neutrinos originating from deep space
The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to Francis Halzen by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
He is recognized for his monumental work on “decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin.”
The breakthrough led to the ground-breaking discovery of high-energy neutrinos originating from deep space. Extremely high-energy cosmic neutrinos are very rare, requiring a massive detector volume (an entire cubic kilometre of ice) to capture enough collisions for study.
"Francis Halzen has led an international team of researchers and engineers who have provided us with a fantastic instrument," Mark Pearce, chair of the Nobel Committee for Physics, said in a statement.
"His tenacity and scientific vision has paved the way for a new kind of astronomy," opening the door to distant galaxies and telling us about the processes of exploding stars.
The researchers quickly detected high-energy neutrinos and later confirmed that they originate from far outside our solar system, opening a new era of astrophysical discovery.
The IceCube Neutrino Observatory was completed in 2011 to tackle this challenge and facilitate the search for neutrino sources across the universe.
The last year’s Physics award was honored to US scientists John Clarke, Michel Devoret and John Martinis for experiments that illustrated the principles of quantum physics in action, paving the way towards the next-generation of computing and other digital technologies.
The physics prize will be followed by chemistry on Wednesday and literature on Thursday. The Nobel season will then feature the widely anticipated peace prize on Friday, concluding with the economics prize on October 12.
