The 2010 William L. McMillan Award will be presented to Liang Fu, Department of Physics, Harvard University, and Rahul Roy, Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, Oxford University. The two scientists are being recognized for their independent prediction of three-dimensional topological insulators.
"There were several very deserving nominees this year," said McMillan Award Committee chair Michael Stone. "The recipients are to be congratulated for having been selected from among them and for their outstanding achievements."
Each recipient will give a colloquium on a topic of his choosing during the Fall 2010 semester. In addition to the invited lectureship, the awardees will receive a plaque and a cash prize.
The award, which honors the memory of Illinois alumnus and faculty member Bill McMillan, is presented annually to a condensed matter physicist for distinguished research performed within five years of receiving the PhD degree.