ERC grantee wins the 2025 Balzan Prize for atoms and ultra-precise measurement of time
Christophe Salomon has made key contributions to atomic clocks, ultracold gases, and the study of quantum many-body systems. He played a pioneering role in developing laser-cooled fountain Cesium atomic clocks, forming the backbone of modern atomic timekeeping and the European ACES/PHARAO space clock initiative.
Professor Salomon was awarded two ERC Advanced Grants with which he investigated Criticality and Dual Superfluidity and Atomic Fermi Gases in Lower Dimensions. The projects provided new insights into how matter behaves at extremely low temperatures and opened new paths in both fundamental physics and technology.
The International Balzan Prize Foundation aims to promote culture, sciences, and the most meritorious initiatives in the cause of humanity, peace, and fraternity among peoples throughout the world. The value of each prize is 750,000 Swiss francs, half of which goes to research projects carried out by young scholars. To date, 16 ERC grantees have won this award.
About the ERC
The European Research Council, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. It funds creative researchers of any nationality and age, to run projects based across Europe. The ERC offers four core grant schemes: Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants, Advanced Grants and Synergy Grants. With its additional Proof of Concept Grant scheme, the ERC helps grantees to bridge the gap between their pioneering research and early phases of its commercialisation. The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Maria Leptin has been the President of the ERC since November 2021. The overall ERC budget from 2021 to 2027 is more than €16 billion, as part of the Horizon Europe programme, which is under the responsibility of Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation.
