Eric Heller
Eric Heller was born in Washington, D.C. in 1946 and educated in Minnesota. He received a PhD in chemical physics at Harvard in 1973, and afterward held faculty positions at UCLA and the University of Washington. From 1993 to 1998, Heller was Director of the Institute for Theoretical Atomic and Molecular Physics at Harvard University, and professor of physics at Harvard. From 1998 to the present, Heller has been a professor of physics and chemistry at Harvard.
Eric Heller’s research focuses on quantum mechanics, scattering theory, nanophysics, condensed matter physics, and quantum chaos. A recurrent theme in Heller’s work involves various aspects of the correspondence principle (which focuses on the relationship between quantum mechanics and classical physical descriptions of the behavior of matter) and semiclassical approximations in a variety of physical problems, including nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory.
Heller is also an artist, producing large-format, computer-generated works based on his research. Over 50 articles on his works have been published in various magazines, and his exhibits include several traveling solo and group shows and works in many private and public collections.
Heller is a fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is also an elected member of the International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science and the National Academy of Science.