The Nobel Prize in Physics 1964

Charles Hard Townes

Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.

Prize share: 1/2

Nicolay Gennadiyevich Basov

Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.

Prize share: 1/4

Aleksandr Mikhailovich Prokhorov

Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.

Prize share: 1/4

The Nobel Prize in Physics 1964 was divided, one half awarded to Charles Hard Townes, the other half jointly to Nicolay Gennadiyevich Basov and Aleksandr Mikhailovich Prokhorov "for fundamental work in the field of quantum electronics, which has led to the construction of oscillators and amplifiers based on the maser-laser principle."

To cite this section
MLA style: The Nobel Prize in Physics 1964. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2020. Fri. 5 Jun 2020. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1964/summary/>

Back to top Back To Top Takes users back to the top of the page

Learn more

Nobel Prizes 2019

Fifteen laureates were awarded in 2019, for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.

Their work and discoveries range from how cells adapt to changes in levels of oxygen to our ability to fight global poverty.

See them all presented here.
2019 Nobel Laureates

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.