Michael Manfra, chief quantum officer at Purdue University and director of the Purdue Quantum Science and Engineering Institute, was formally recognized as a recipient of the 2026 APS Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Physics Prize during a ceremony held March 18 in Denver, Colorado. The prize, awarded annually by the American Physical Society, is the most prestigious honor given by the APS recognizing outstanding contributions to condensed matter physics.
Manfra was honored for groundbreaking experimental work that provided direct evidence of anyonic braiding statistics in the fractional quantum Hall effect, an achievement that confirmed long-standing theoretical predictions and advanced understanding of exotic quantum particles. His research explores topological phases of matter and their potential applications in quantum computing, including the development of qubit platforms that may be more resistant to decoherence.
The award highlights both Manfra’s leadership in condensed matter physics and Purdue University’s growing prominence in quantum science. His work, which bridges fundamental physics and emerging quantum technologies, is widely regarded as a major step toward harnessing topological phenomena for next-generation computing systems.
