View source for Hideki Yukawa

{{Short description|Japanese theoretical physicist (1907–1981)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Expand Japanese|topic=bio}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Hideki Yukawa
| native_name       = 湯川 秀樹
| native_name_lang  = ja
| image             = Yukawa.jpg
| caption           = Yukawa in 1949
| birth_name        = Hideki Ogawa
| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1907|01|23|df=yes}}
| birth_place       = [[Tokyo]], [[Empire of Japan]]
| death_date        = {{Nowrap|{{Death date and age|1981|09|08|1907|01|23|df=yes}}}}
| death_place       = [[Kyoto]], Japan
| alma_mater        = {{Plain list|
* [[Kyoto Imperial University]]
* [[Osaka Imperial University]] (PhD)<ref>https://www.ias.edu/scholars/hideki-yukawa</ref>}}
| known_for         = Postulating [[meson]]s
| spouse            = {{Marriage|Sumi Yukawa|1932}}
| children          = 2 
| awards            = {{Plain list|
* [[Imperial Prize of the Japan Academy]] (1940)
* [[Nobel Prize in Physics]] (1949)
* [[Fellow of the Royal Society#Foreign member|ForMemRS]] (1963)<ref name="frs">{{Cite journal | last1 = Kemmer | first1 = N. | author-link = Nicholas Kemmer| doi = 10.1098/rsbm.1983.0023 | title = Hideki Yukawa. 23 January 1907 – 8 September 1981 | journal = [[Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society]] | volume = 29 | pages = 660–676| year = 1983 | jstor = 769816| doi-access = free }}</ref>
* [[Lomonosov Gold Medal]] (1963)
* [[Pour le Mérite#Civil class|Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts]] (1967)
* [[Order of the Rising Sun]] (Grand Cordon, 1977)
}}
| fields            = [[Particle physics]]
| work_institutions = {{Plain list|
* Osaka Imperial University
* Kyoto Imperial University
* [[Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics|Research Institute for Fundamental Physics]]
}}
| academic_advisors = {{Plain list|
* [[Seishi Kikuchi]]<ref name=PhysicsTree>{{Cite web|title=Hideki Yukawa - Physics Tree|url=https://academictree.org/physics/peopleinfo.php?pid=49876|website=academictree.org|access-date=2025-06-07}}</ref>
* [[Yoshio Nishina]]<ref name=PhysicsTree/>
}}
| notable_students  = {{Plain list|
* [[Hiroshi Enatsu]]<ref name=PhysicsTree/>
* [[Kazumi Maki]]<ref name=PhysicsTree/>
* [[Shoichi Sakata]]<ref name=PhysicsTree/>
* [[Donald R. Yennie]]<ref name=PhysicsTree/>
}}
| signature         = Hideki Yukawa signature.jpg
}}

'''Hideki Yukawa''' ({{Langx|ja|湯川 秀樹}}; {{Ne|'''Ogawa'''}}; 23 January 1907 – 8 September 1981) was a Japanese [[theoretical physicist]] who received the [[Nobel Prize in Physics]] in 1949 "for his prediction of the existence of [[meson]]s on the basis of theoretical work on [[nuclear force]]s".

== Biography ==
{{Quote box
 |quote  = Physics is a science that has made rapid progress in the twentieth century ... I desire, as I did in the past, to be a traveler in a strange land and a colonist in a new country. (from the foreword to his autobiography)
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Hideki Ogawa was born on 23 January 1907 in [[Tokyo]], Japan, and grew up in [[Kyoto]] with two older brothers, two older sisters, and two younger brothers.<ref name="Tabibito">{{cite book | last=Yukawa | first = Hideki | title=Tabibito (旅人) = The Traveler | publisher=World Scientific | year=1982 | isbn=9971-950-10-3 | pages = 46–47 & 118; 121–123; 10; Foreword; 141 & 163 | doi = 10.1142/0014 | s2cid = 124612924 }}</ref> He read the Confucian ''[[Doctrine of the Mean]]'', and later [[Lao-Tzu]] and [[Zhuang Zhou|Chuang-Tzu]]. His father, for a time, considered sending him to technical college rather than university since he was "not as outstanding a student as his older brothers". However, when his father broached the idea with his middle school principal, the principal praised his "high potential" in mathematics and offered to adopt Ogawa himself in order to keep him on a scholarly career. At that, his father relented.

Ogawa decided against becoming a mathematician when his high school teacher marked his exam answer as incorrect when Ogawa proved a theorem but in a different manner than the teacher expected.<ref name="Tabibito"/> He decided against a career in experimental physics in college when he demonstrated clumsiness in glassblowing, a requirement for experiments in [[spectroscopy]].<ref name="Tabibito"/>

In 1929, Ogawa graduated from [[Kyoto Imperial University]], where he was a lecturer from 1932 to 1939. During this period, he was interested in [[theoretical physics]], particularly in the theory of [[elementary particle]]s. 

In 1932, Ogawa married {{nihongo|Sumi Yukawa|[[:ja:湯川スミ|スミ]]}}. In accordance with Japanese customs (see [[mukoyoshi]]), since he came from a family with many sons but his father-in-law Genyo had none, he was adopted by Genyo and changed his family name from Ogawa to Yukawa.<ref name="Tabibito"/> The couple had two sons, Harumi and Takaaki. In 1933, he became Lecturer and Assistant Professor of Physics at [[Osaka University|Osaka Imperial University]].

In 1935, Yukawa published his theory of [[meson]]s, which explained the interaction between [[proton]]s and [[neutron]]s at Osaka Imperial University, and was a major influence on research into elementary particles.<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |year=1935 |title=On the Interaction of Elementary Particles |url=https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/ppmsj1919/17/0/17_0_48/_pdf/-char/en |journal=Proc. Phys.-Math. Soc. Jpn. |volume=17 |issue=48 |author=Yukawa, H. }}</ref> 

In 1938, Yukawa received a doctorate from Osaka Imperial University for his predictions regarding the existence of mesons and his theoretical work on the nature of [[nuclear force]]s.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www-yukawa.phys.sci.osaka-u.ac.jp/en/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/OU1938-Y1.pdf| title=学位論文 | website=www-yukawa.phys.sci.osaka-u.ac.jp | language=ja | trans-title=Dissertation}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ias.edu/scholars/hideki-yukawa | title=Hideki Yukawa - Scholars &#124; Institute for Advanced Study | date=9 December 2019 }}</ref> These research achievements were the reason he was later awarded the [[Nobel Prize in Physics]].

In 1939, Yukawa was appointed Professor of Theoretical Physics at Kyoto Imperial University. The following year, he won the [[Imperial Prize of the Japan Academy]], and in 1943 the [[Person of Cultural Merit|Decoration of Cultural Merit]] from the Japanese government. In 1949, he became a visiting professor at [[Columbia University]], the same year he received the Nobel Prize in Physics, after the discovery by [[Cecil Powell]], [[Giuseppe Occhialini]], and [[César Lattes]] of Yukawa's predicted [[Pion|pi meson]] in 1947. Yukawa also worked on the theory of [[K-capture]], in which a low energy electron is absorbed by the nucleus, after its initial prediction by [[G. C. Wick]].<ref name=":1">Segré, Emilio (1987) "K-Electron Capture by Nuclei", pp. 11–12, chapter 3 in ''Discovering Alvarez: selected works of Luis W. Alvarez, with commentary by his students and colleagues'', Luis W. Alvarez and W. Peter Trower, University of Chicago Press. {{ISBN|0-226-81304-5}}.</ref>

{{Quote box
 |quote  = [Once I had published my seminal 1934 paper on particle interaction] I felt like a traveler who rests himself at a small tea shop at the top of a mountain slope. At that time I was not thinking about whether there were any more mountains ahead. [conclusion of his autobiography]
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In 1953, Yukawa became the first Director of the Research Institute for Fundamental Physics (now the [[Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics]]). He received a Doctorate, ''[[honoris causa]],'' from the [[University of Paris]] and honorary memberships in the [[Royal Society]],<ref name="frs"/> [[Royal Society of Edinburgh]], the [[Indian Academy of Sciences]], the International Academy of Philosophy and Sciences{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}, the United States [[National Academy of Sciences]],<ref name=":0" /> the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]],<ref name=":1" /> the [[American Philosophical Society]],<ref name=":2" /> and the [[Pontifical Academy of Sciences|Pontificia Academia Scientiarum]].

Yukawa was an editor of ''[[Progress of Theoretical Physics]]'',<ref name=":2">{{cite book|last=Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics |author2=Gakkai, Nihon Butsuri |title=Progress of Theoretical Physics |location=Kyoto |publisher=Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics and Physical Society of Japan |year=1946 |url=http://ptp.ipap.jp/journal/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020203114022/http://ptp.ipap.jp/journal/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=2002-02-03 |oclc=44519062 |access-date=2008-03-03 }}</ref> and published the books ''Introduction to Quantum Mechanics'' (1946) and ''Introduction to the Theory of Elementary Particles'' (1948).

== Activism ==
In 1955, Yukawa joined ten other leading scientists and intellectuals in signing the [[Russell–Einstein Manifesto]], calling for [[nuclear disarmament]].

Yukawa was one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for drafting a [[world constitution]];<ref>{{Cite web |title=Letters from Thane Read asking Helen Keller to sign the World Constitution for world peace. 1961 |url=https://www.afb.org/HelenKellerArchive?a=d&d=A-HK01-07-B149-F04-022.1.8 |access-date=2023-07-01 |website=Helen Keller Archive |publisher=American Foundation for the Blind}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Letter from World Constitution Coordinating Committee to Helen, enclosing current materials |url=https://www.afb.org/HelenKellerArchive?a=d&d=A-HK01-07-B154-F05-028.1.6 |access-date=2023-07-03 |website=Helen Keller Archive |publisher=American Foundation for the Blind}}</ref> subsequently, a [[World Constituent Assembly]] convened to draft and adopt a [[Constitution for the Federation of Earth]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Preparing earth constitution {{!}} Global Strategies & Solutions {{!}} The Encyclopedia of World Problems |url=http://encyclopedia.uia.org/en/strategy/193465 |url-status=dead |access-date=2023-07-15 |website=The Encyclopedia of World Problems {{!}} Union of International Associations (UIA) |archive-date=19 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719215501/http://encyclopedia.uia.org/en/strategy/193465 }}</ref>

== Later life and death ==
Yukawa retired from Kyoto University in 1970 as professor emeritus. Owing to increasing infirmity, in his final years he appeared in public in a wheelchair. He died of [[pneumonia]] and [[heart failure]] on 8 September 1981 at his home in [[Sakyo-ku, Kyoto]], at the age of 74. His tomb is in [[Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto]].

Solo violinist [[Diana Yukawa]] (ダイアナ湯川) is a close relative of Hideki Yukawa.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}}

== Awards and honors ==
[[File:Hideki Yukawa with family 1949.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Yukawa with family in 1949]]

*1940 – [[Imperial Prize of the Japan Academy]]
*1941 – Academic Noma Award
*1943 – [[Order of Culture]]
*1949 – [[Nobel Prize in Physics]]
*1963 – Elected a [[List of Fellows of the Royal Society elected in 1963|Foreign Member Royal Society (ForMemRS)]]<ref name="frs"/>
*1963 – [[Lomonosov Gold Medal]]
*1967 – [[Pour le Mérite]]<ref name="ORDEN POUR LE MÉRITE">{{cite web | title=Hideki Yukawa | website=ORDEN POUR LE MÉRITE | url=http://www.orden-pourlemerite.de/mitglieder/hideki-yukawa | language=de | access-date=17 March 2022}}</ref>
*1967 – Medal of the [[Pontifical Academy of Sciences]]
*1977 – Grand Cordon of the [[Order of the Rising Sun]]
*1981 – [[List of Japanese court ranks, positions and hereditary titles|Junior Second Rank]] (8 September; posthumous)
There is a street, [[List of streets at CERN|Route Yukawa]], named after Yukawa at [[CERN]], [[Geneva]], Switzerland.

==Bibliography==
* ''Profiles of Japanese science and scientists, 1970'' – supervisory editor: Hideki Yukawa (1970)
* ''Creativity and intuition: a physicist looks at East and West'' by Hideki Yukawa; translated by John Bester (1973)
* ''Scientific works'' (1979)
* ''Tabibito (旅人) – The Traveler'' by Hideki Yukawa; translated by L. Brown & R. Yoshida (1982), {{ISBN|9971-950-10-3}}

==See also==
* [[Yukawa potential]], an approximation for the binding force in an atomic nucleus
* [[Yukawa interaction]]
* [[Progress of Theoretical Physics (journal)|''Progress of Theoretical Physics'']]
* [[List of Japanese Nobel laureates]]
* [[List of Nobel laureates affiliated with Kyoto University]]
* [[6913 Yukawa]] – an asteroid named after Hideki Yukawa

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links||wikt=no|n=no|s=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no}}
* {{Nobelprize}}
* {{cite web | title=Research Profile – Hideki Yukawa | website=Lindau Nobel Mediatheque | date=23 January 1907 | url=https://www.mediatheque.lindau-nobel.org/research-profile/laureate-yukawa | ref={{sfnref | Lindau Nobel Mediatheque | 1907}} | access-date=17 March 2022}}
*[https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/ppmsj1919/17/0/17_0_48/_pdf/-char/en Paper: On the Interaction of Elementary Particles. I] – paper for which Yukawa received the Nobel Prize 
* [http://www.nobel-winners.com/Physics/hideki_yukawa.html About Hideki Yukawa]
* {{Internet Archive short film|id=gov.archives.arc.53506|name="Yukawa Story (1954)"}}
*{{Internet Archive author |sname=Hideki Yukawa}}

{{Japanese Nobel laureates}}
{{Nobel Prize in Physics Laureates 1926-1950}}
{{1949 Nobel Prize winners}}
{{World Constitutional Convention call signatories}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yukawa, Hideki}}
[[Category:1907 births]]
[[Category:1981 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Japanese physicists]]
[[Category:Academic staff of Osaka University]]
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[[Category:Nobel laureates in Physics]]
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[[Category:Laureates of the Imperial Prize]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Lomonosov Gold Medal]]
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