Biography:Walter Kohn: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Theoretical physicist and co-founder of density functional theory}}
{{Short description|Theoretical physicist and co-founder of density functional theory}}
{{Biography page}}
{{Infobox scientist
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Walter Kohn
| name = Walter Kohn

Revision as of 17:35, 24 May 2026


Walter Kohn
Walter Kohn
Walter Kohn
Born 9 March 1923
Vienna, Austria
Died 19 April 2016
Santa Barbara, California, United States


Known for Density functional theory; Kohn-Sham equations; electronic structure theory
Awards Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1998)

Walter Kohn (9 March 1923 - 19 April 2016) was an Austrian-American theoretical physicist whose work made density functional theory a practical foundation for quantum chemistry and materials calculations.

Quantum context

Kohn's work with Lu Jeu Sham reformulated the many-electron quantum problem in terms of an electron density and an auxiliary system of single-particle equations. The resulting Kohn-Sham method became one of the most widely used tools for electronic structure.

In the Quantum Collection he is linked from computational quantum chemistry because density functional theory is a bridge between quantum many-body theory, chemistry, and materials science.

Linked Quantum Collection pages

References


Author: Harold Foppele


Source attribution: Biography:Walter Kohn