physics

Pierre Hohenberg

Pierre Hohenberg is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Pierre Hohenberg rather than just read about it. In short: Pierre Hohenberg (3 October 1934 – 15 December 2017) was a French-American theoretical physicist, who worked primarily on statistical mechanics. The Hohenberg–Kohn theorems, formulated by Hohenberg and Walter Kohn gave rise to the density functional theory (DFT).

Key takeaways

Pierre Hohenberg belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Pierre Hohenberg to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Pierre Hohenberg from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Pierre Hohenberg (3 October 1934 – 15 December 2017) was a French-American theoretical physicist, who worked primarily on statistical mechanics. The Hohenberg–Kohn theorems, formulated by Hohenberg and Walter Kohn gave rise to the density functional theory (DFT). He is also known for the development of dynamic scaling theory of critical phenomena, along with Bertrand Halperin.

Academic life Pierre Claude Hohenberg studied at Harvard University, where he earned his bachelor's degree in 1956 and a master's degree in 1958 (after a stay during 1956/57 at École Normale Supérieure), and his doctorate in 1962. From 1962 to 1963, he was at the Institute for Physical Problems in Moscow, followed by a stay at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. From 1964 to 1995 he was at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill. From 1985 to 1989, he was director of the department of theoretical physics and from 1989 to 1995 was "Distinguished Member of Technical Staff". From 1974 to 1977, he was also professor of theoretical physics at the Technical University of Munich, where he had previously been a guest professor in 1972–1973. From 1995 to 2003, he was "Deputy Provost of Science and Technology" at Yale University. Subsequently, he was the Yale "Eugene Higgins Adjunct Professor of Physics and Applied Physics". Hohenberg was additionally from 1963 to 1964 and again in 1988 guest professor in Paris and in 1990–1991 a Lorentz-Professor in Leiden. In 2004, he became Senior Vice Provost of Research at New York University, a position held until 2011, when he stepped down to join the Physics Department as Professor. In 2012, he became emeritus Professor of Physics at NYU.

Research

Hohenberg formulated in 1964 with Walter Kohn the Hohenberg–Kohn theorem in the course of his work on density functional theory.He became famous primarily for his investigations in the 1960s and 1970s in the theory of dynamic (i.e. temporally variable) critical phenomena close to phase transitions. He collaborated thereby with Bertrand Halperin, Shang-keng Ma and Eric Siggia in the application of renormalization methods. Additionally, Hohenberg worked (with Swift) on hydrodynamic instabilities, on the Swift–Hohenberg equation and on pattern formation in non-equilibrium systems with Michael Cross. Preceding David Mermin and Herbert Wagner he proved in 1967 the impossibility of spontaneous symmetry breaking in one and two dimensions, now known as the Hohenberg–Mermin–Wagner theorem. Mermin and Wagner published an alternative proof of the theorem for magnetic systems based on Hohenberg's work, but Mermin and Wagner published it first in 1966, citing the unpublished work of Hohenberg. With N. Richard Werthamer and Eugene Helfand, Hohenberg came up with the Werthamer–Helfand–Hohenberg theory in 1966 to model type-II superconductors. In collaboration with Richard Friedberg, he presented a new formulation of nonrelativistic quantum mechanics based on the consistent histories approach to the interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Fellowships and awards Hohenberg was also politically active. In 1983, he chaired the committee of the American Physical Society for the freedom of scientists and in 1992–1993 on an APS committee for the support of scientists in the Soviet Union. From 1984 to 1996, he was a member of the committee for human rights of the New York Academy of Sciences. Hohenberg was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (since 1985), the National Academy of Sciences (from 1989), the American Philosophical Society (since 2014) and the New York Institute for the Humanities (since 2016). He received several prizes including

1990 Fritz London Memorial Prize, 1999 Max Planck Medal, and 2003 Lars Onsager Prize.

Selected works Hohenberg, P.; Kohn, W. (1964-11-09). "Inhomogeneous Electron Gas". Physical Review. 136 (3B): B864–B871. doi:10.1103/PhysRev.136.B864. ISSN 0031-899X. Halperin, B. I.; Hohenberg, P. C. (1967-09-18). "Generalization of Scaling Laws to Dynamical Properties of a System Near its Critical Point". Physical Review Letters. 19 (12): 700–703. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.19.700. ISSN 0031-9007. Halperin, B. I.; Hohenberg, P. C. (1969-01-10). "Scaling Laws for Dynamic Critical Phenomena". Physical Review. 177 (2): 952–971. doi:10.1103/PhysRev.177.952. ISSN 0031-899X. Halperin, B. I.; Hohenberg, P. C.; Ma, Shang-keng (1972-12-04). "Calculation of Dynamic Critical Properties Using Wilson's Expansion Methods". Physical Review Letters. 29 (23): 1548–1551. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.29.1548. ISSN 0031-9007. Swift, J.; Hohenberg, P. C. (1977-01-01). "Hydrodynamic fluctuations at the convective instability". Physical Review A. 15 (1): 319–328. doi:10.1103/PhysRevA.15.319. ISSN 0556-2791. Hohenberg, P. C. (1967-06-10). "Existence of Long-Range Order in One and Two Dimensions". Physical Review. 158 (2): 383–386. doi:10.1103/PhysRev.158.383. ISSN 0031-899X. P. C. Hohenberg: Dynamical theory of critical phenomena, in E. G. D. Cohen (Ed.) "Statistical mechanics at the turn of the decade", Dekker, New York 1971. Hohenberg, P. C.; Halperin, B. I. (1977-07-01). "Theory of dynamic critical phenomena". Reviews of Modern Physics. 49 (3): 435–479. doi:10.1103/RevModPhys.49.435. ISSN 0034-6861. Cross, M. C.; Hohenberg, P. C. (1993-07-01). "Pattern formation outside of equilibrium". Reviews of Modern Physics. 65 (3): 851–1112. doi:10.1103/RevModPhys.65.851. ISSN 0034-6861. Friedberg, R; Hohenberg, P C (2014-09-01). "Compatible quantum theory". Reports on Progress in Physics. 77 (9) 092001. arXiv:1405.1961. doi:10.1088/0034-4885/77/9/092001. ISSN 0034-4885.

See also Critical phenomena Dynamic scaling

References

External links Homepage at NYU

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Pierre Hohenberg

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Pierre Hohenberg claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Pierre Hohenberg before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Pierre Hohenberg ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Pierre Hohenberg

In research: Pierre Hohenberg appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Pierre Hohenberg in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Pierre Hohenberg is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1934 births, 2017 deaths, Academic staff of the Technical University of Munich, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Pierre Hohenberg outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Pierre Hohenberg” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Pierre Hohenberg in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Pierre Hohenberg means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Pierre Hohenberg out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pierre Hohenberg in simple terms?

Why does Pierre Hohenberg matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Pierre Hohenberg?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Pierre Hohenberg.