I was born in Frankfurt, W. Germany, on
7.20., '47 as the first of two sons. My childhood was very much
influenced by the Second World War, which had only just ended. We
children had great fun playing among the ruins of the demolished
buildings, but naturally were too young to realize that much more
than just buildings had been destroyed.
Until the age of 31, I lived partly in Frankfurt and partly in
Offenbach, a nearby city. I attended school in both cities, and
it was in Frankfurt that I started to study physics. Already as a
child about 10 years of age, I had decided to become a physicist
without actually knowing what it involved. While studying
physics, I started to wonder whether I had really made the right
choice. Especially theoretical physics seemed so technical, so
relatively unphilosophical and unimaginative. In those years, I
concentrated more on playing music with friends in a beat-band
rather than on physics. My mother had introduced me to classical
music very early in life, and I believe this played an important
role in my subsequent development. Unfortunately, I started
playing the violin rather late, at the age of 15 only, but
thoroughly enjoyed being a member of our school orchestra. My
brother was responsible for my transition from classics to beat
by his perpetually immersing me with the sounds of the Beatles
and the Rolling Stones, until I finally really liked that kind of
music, and even started composing songs and playing in various
beat-bands. In this way, I first learned how difficult teamwork
can be, how much fun it is to be creative, and how unpredictable
the reaction of an audience can be.
My education in physics gained some significance when I began my
diploma work in Prof. Dr. W. Martienssen's group, under Dr. E.
Hoenig's guidance. I realized that actually doing physics
is much more enjoyable than just learning it. Maybe 'doing it' is
the right way of learning, at least as far as I am
concerned.
I have always been a great admirer of Prof. Martienssen,
especially of his ability to grasp and state the essence of the
scientific context of a problem. Dr. Hoenig introduced me to
experimenting, and exhibited great patience when I asked him very
stupid questions in trying to catch up on what I had missed over
all the previous years.
In 1969, Lore Wagler became my wife. We had both been studying
for quite a long time - Lore is now a psychologist - so only
recently did we decide to have children: a daughter born in
Switzerland in 1984, and a son born in California in 1986. This
was the absolute highlight and most wonderful experience of my
whole life. However, fatherhood is not without its sacrifice. For
the time being, nearly all my hobbies, like music (singing,
playing the guitar and the violin), and sports (soccer, tennis,
skiing, sailing and playing golf) have had to take a back
seat.
It was in 1978 that Lore - my private psychotherapist - convinced
me to accept an offer from the IBM Zürich Research
Laboratory to join a physics group. This turned out to be an
extremely important decision, as it was here I met Heinrich
Rohrer. His way of viewing physics, combined with his humanity
and sense of humor, fully restored my somewhat lost curiosity in
physics. My years at Ruschlikon, and in IBM Research in general,
have been very exciting, not only because of the development of
the STM, but also because of the stimulating and pleasant
atmosphere created by the people working there, and by those
responsible. Working together in a team with Heinrich Rohrer,
Christoph Gerber and Edmund Weibel was an extraordinarily
delightful experience, and one for which I shall be eternally
grateful. It is also extremely gratifying that our work was
recognized far afield. We were first awarded the German Physics
Prize, the Otto Klung Prize, the Hewlett Packard Prize, the King
Faisal Prize, and now the ultimate crown, the Nobel Prize for
Physics. Life certainly does not become easier for a scientist
once his work has exceeded a certain significance. But while
prizes do add some complications, I must admit they also have
their compensations!
(added in 1991:)
In 1990 I joined the Supervisory Board of the Daimler Benz
Holding and presently I am involved in a few political
activities.
From Nobel Lectures, Physics 1981-1990, Editor-in-Charge Tore Frängsmyr, Editor Gösta Ekspong, World Scientific Publishing Co., Singapore, 1993
This autobiography/biography was written at the time of the award and first published in the book series Les Prix Nobel. It was later edited and republished in Nobel Lectures. To cite this document, always state the source as shown above.
Copyright © The Nobel Foundation 1986
Gerd Binnig
