Heisenberg, Werner (Karl)

(born Dec. 5, 1901, Würzburg, Ger.—died Feb. 1, 1976, Munich, W.Ger.) German physicist. Educated at Munich and Göttingen, he taught at the University of Leipzig (1927–41) and directed the Max Planck Institute for Physics (1942–76). In 1925 he solved the problem of how to account for the stationary discrete energy states of an anharmonic oscillator, a solution that launched the development of quantum mechanics. In 1927 he published his famous uncertainty principle. He also made important contributions to the theories of the hydrodynamics of turbulence, the atomic nucleus, ferromagnetism, cosmic rays, and subatomic particles. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1932 for his work on quantum mechanics. He led Germany's efforts in World War II (1939–45) to develop an atomic bomb.