Physicist · 1887 – 1961
Erwin Schrödinger
Developed wave mechanics and the Schrödinger equation, a foundational tool of quantum physics, shared the 1933 Nobel Prize, and probed the conceptual puzzles of quantum theory through the Schrödinger's cat paradox.
Greatest Achievements
- Developed the wave equation governing quantum systems.
- Shared the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics with Paul Dirac.
- Wrote What Is Life?, which inspired the rise of molecular biology.
Major Accomplishments
- Developed the wave equation governing quantum systems.
- Shared the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics with Paul Dirac.
- Wrote What Is Life?, which inspired the rise of molecular biology.
Scientific Breakthroughs
- Formulated the Schrödinger wave equation in 1926.
- Founded wave mechanics, one of the two pillars of quantum theory.
- Introduced the Schrödinger's cat thought experiment in 1935.
Major Works
- Quantisierung als Eigenwertproblem (papers on wave mechanics)
- What Is Life?
- Collected Papers on Wave Mechanics
Impact Analysis
The Schrödinger equation is one of the most important equations in all of science, used daily across physics and chemistry, while What Is Life? helped launch molecular biology.
Historical influence score: 86/100